CONSTITUTIONAL AFFAIRS

Acts of Parliament (Internet Access)

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs if she will make it her policy for all legislation for which her Department has responsibility to be available online.

Harriet Harman: It is my Department's policy to make all relevant information available via its website as a matter of course unless that information should more correctly be published elsewhere online. For example, Acts of Parliament are published by HMSO. In these latter cases, my Department's policy is to provide links from its website to the information.

Child Maintenance Awards

Tim Farron: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs whether guidance has been issued to courts requiring the granting of maintenance awards on an equal basis for each parent in cases where custody is awarded on an equal basis.

Bridget Prentice: No guidance on this matter has been issued to the courts. Under existing legislation the courts are empowered to make a number of orders in relation to the division of family property and financial provision for children. The courts will consider a range of issues in each case, including the contribution, both financial and other, made by each of the parties to looking after the home and children. The courts have the discretion to make the orders that they see as appropriate and fair with regard to the specific circumstances of each case. The needs of children are always the paramount consideration. Orders are made with regard to the financial status, and disposable income, of both parties.

Coroners (Retirement)

Vera Baird: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs at what age a coroner who was appointed in 1972 must retire.

Harriet Harman: There is no retirement age for coroners.

Family Visitor Appeals

Lynne Jones: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many (a) oral and (b) paper-only family visitor appeals were received by the Immigration Appellate Authority in each month since 1 January 2004.

Bridget Prentice: Provisional figures show the volume of monthly receipts at the adjudicator tier of the Immigration Appellate Authority (IAA), for the period January 2004 to the end of March 2005, to be as follows:
	
		
			  Family visitor visa 
			 Month Oral receipts Paper receipts 
		
		
			 2004   
			 January 490 578 
			 February 787 675 
			 March 789 865 
			 April 790 716 
			 May 803 646 
			 June 1,134 900 
			 July 1,266 1,173 
			 August 1,624 1,191 
			 September 2,452 1,808 
			 October 1,674 1,517 
			 November 1,440 1,403 
			 December 2,259 1,823 
			
			 2005   
			 January 1,317 856 
			 February 1,122 959 
			 March 994 776

Family Visitor Appeals

Lynne Jones: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many (a) oral and (b) paper-only family visitor appeals were determined by the Immigration Appellate Authority in each month since 1 January 2004; and how many of each type of appeal were successful.

Bridget Prentice: Provisional figures for the period January 2004 to March 2005 show the monthly volume of family visitor appeal decisions from an oral hearing, with appeal outcomes, at the adjudicator tier of the Immigration Appellate Authority, to be as follows:
	
		
			 Month Total oral decisions Number allowed Number dismissed Number withdrawn 
		
		
			 2004 
			 January 782 439 328 15 
			 February 459 264 184 11 
			 March 546 313 209 24 
			 April 731 391 303 37 
			 May 761 438 291 32 
			 June 789 455 309 25 
			 July 795 475 281 39 
			 August 993 607 339 47 
			 September 1,239 741 449 49 
			 October 1,648 977 614 57 
			 November 1,650 981 620 49 
			 December 1,345 791 497 57 
			  
			 2005 
			 January 1,049 538 467 44 
			 February 1,281 680 554 47 
			 March 1,315 656 579 80 
		
	
	And the provisional figures for family visitor appeals determined on the papers only, for the equivalent period, to be as follows.
	
		
			 Month Total paper decisions Number allowed Number dismissed Number withdrawn 
		
		
			 2004 
			 January 690 230 457 3 
			 February 615 222 390 3 
			 March 672 257 413 2 
			 April 637 220 417 0 
			 May 767 311 452 4 
			 June 910 358 549 3 
			 July 627 243 381 3 
			 August 908 334 572 2 
			 September 1,088 453 635 0 
			 October 1,313 450 862 1 
			 November 1,686 592 1,092 2 
			 December 1,056 382 669 5 
			  
			 2005 
			 January 1,132 412 718 2 
			 February 1,358 439 915 4 
			 March 1,294 486 806 2

Inquests

Vera Baird: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs 
	(1)  what the average time has been between deaths and inquests in the jurisdiction of the Teesside Coroner during the last 12 months;
	(2)  how many unfinished cases there are in the jurisdiction of the Teesside Coroner; and how many are over six months old;
	(3)  what the backlog of cases requiring inquests in the jurisdiction of the Teesside Coroner is; and how many are over six months old;
	(4)  what the average time has been between deaths and inquests in the coroners' jurisdictions (a) in the North East and (b) nationally during the last 12 months.

Harriet Harman: I will write to my hon. and learned Friend once the information is available.

Lay Magistrates (Northern Ireland)

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many lay magistrates there are in Northern Ireland, broken down by (a) gender, (b) community background and (c) age.

Bridget Prentice: The Lord Chancellor recently appointed 272 people to the new judicial office of Lay Magistrate in Northern Ireland. Of these, (a) 46 per cent. are male and 54 per cent. female; (b) 55 per cent. Protestant, 38 per cent. Roman Catholic and 7 per cent. Other, and; (c) 6 per cent. are under the age of 30, 25 per cent. are between the ages of 30 and 40, 24 per cent. are between the ages of 40 and 50, 27 per cent. are between the ages of 50 and 60 and 18 per cent. are over the age of 60.

Legal Aid

David Kidney: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs when she plans to publish the findings of the Fundamental Legal Aid Review announced in May 2004; and if she will make a statement.

Bridget Prentice: We intend to set out our vision for the future of legal aid, outlining the Department's long-term strategy for reform and summarising the key findings of the Fundamental Legal Aid Review, in due course.

Legal Aid

Oliver Heald: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what plans the Departmenthas to amend the system of legal aid in fraud trials.

Bridget Prentice: The Government are committed to overhauling the laws on fraud and the way fraud trials are conducted for the 21st century ensuring that they are quicker and more effective.
	The Fraud Bill, which is currently before Parliament, will implement Law Commission proposals to remove the deception offences in the Theft Acts and replace them with a general offence of fraud which can be committed in three ways—by false representation, by failure to disclose information or by abuse of position. This will ensure that prosecutors are better placed to undertake short and effective fraud trials.
	We intend to set out our vision for the future of Legal Aid, outlining the Department's long term strategy for reform and summarising the key findings of the Fundamental Legal Aid Review, including tackling fraud, in due course.

Polling Times

John Whittingdale: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs if she will extend the hours of polling for local government elections to the same as those that apply for general elections; and if she will make a statement.

Harriet Harman: The Government agree with the Electoral Commission that consistent hours of polling at all elections is desirable. Polling hours for all elections except parliamentary elections are set in secondary legislation by various authorities, such as the devolved Administrations, and those authorities will need to take decisions on this issue. I will consider carefully any suggestions for amendments to the rules of the elections for which I am responsible.

Race Relations (Amendment) Act

Keith Vaz: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what arrangements are in place to ensure that bodies within the responsibility of her Department comply with the requirements of the Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000.

Harriet Harman: The Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000 placed a general duty and specific duties on a number of public bodies. The list of bodies subject to the general and specific duties is updated periodically in consultation with the CRE. My Department's Race Equality Scheme sets out the departmental approach to compliance and has been recently refreshed to take into account new bodies who form part of my Department.

Rape Trials

Vera Baird: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what training is undertaken by recorders of the Crown court before they are ticketed to try rape.

Harriet Harman: Judicial training is the responsibility of the Lord Chief Justice and is exercised through the Judicial Studies Board (JSB), an independent body chaired by Lord Justice Keene.
	The Senior Presiding Judge, on behalf of the Lord Chief Justice, authorises selected Recorders to hear cases involving rape or a serious sexual offence. Before being authorised, a judge must have wide and significant experience of the criminal justice system, and must have demonstrated the necessary sensitivity for these cases. These authorised Recorders may not hear such a case without first having attended the appropriate JSB training, and the designated course for this is the Serious Sexual Offences Seminar (SSOS). Authorised Recorders, along with other authorised judiciary, will be invited to continuation training every three years from the date of their first attendance.

Rape Trials

Vera Baird: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how recorders of the Crown are selected as suitable to try rape cases.

Harriet Harman: The Senior Presiding Judge, on behalf of the Lord Chief Justice, authorises selected Recorders to hear cases involving rape or a serious sexual offence. Before being authorised a judge must have wide and significant experience of the criminal justice system, and must have demonstrated the necessary sensitivity for these cases. These authorised Recorders may not hear such a case without first having attended the appropriate JSB training, and the designated course for this is the Serious Sexual Offences Seminar (SSOS). Authorised Recorders, along with other authorised judiciary, will be invited to continuation training every three years from the date of their first attendance.

Terrorism Acts

Keith Vaz: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what plans she has to reform legal procedures for dealing with terror cases.

Bridget Prentice: The Government have indicated their intention to bring forward fresh counter-terrorism legislation and are currently considering what provisions it should contain. The intention is to bring forward proposals for pre-legislative scrutiny in late autumn.

MINISTER FOR WOMEN

Working Mothers (Child Care)

Paul Goodman: To ask the Minister for Women what plans the Government have to provide working mothers with access to personal advisers in relation to child care; and if she will make a statement.

Meg Munn: Jobcentre Plus have introduced Childcare Partnership Managers to help support the growth of local child care provision. They work alongside child care partners and employers to meet the child care needs of unemployed parents.
	We realise that many working parents face difficulties in finding accessible, affordable and quality child care, which stops them making the most of their opportunities in work, training or study.
	Childcare Partnership Managers have a key role to play in helping them find the child care they need when they need it.

WALES

Digital Television

Peter Law: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport on the provision of digital signals which would allow free view set-top boxes to be used in Welsh valley communities.

Peter Hain: The topography of the Welsh valleys leads to problems in securing digital terrestrial reception. Of the 200 analogue transmitters in Wales, only nine have so far been converted to digital transmissions. This is to protect current analogue signals from interference. When switchover occurs, it is expected that all 200 transmitters will be equipped to broadcast digital signals.
	We are committed to achieving digital switchover between 2008 and 2012, on a region by region basis, and will ensure that the interests of elderly people and other vulnerable groups are protected.

Higher Education Fees

Peter Law: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will meet the Chancellor of the Exchequer to discuss the provision of the necessary resources to the Welsh Assembly Government to avoid the introduction of variable top up fees in Wales.

Peter Hain: I understand that the Assembly and the DfES have agreed the financial transfer under the Higher Education Act 2004.

Honours

Greg Pope: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many officials currently in the Department received honours in the recent Queen's Birthday Honours List; and at what rank of honour.

Peter Hain: None.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Digital Television

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on progress towards rollout of digital television services.

James Purnell: Great progress has been made. 61.9 per cent. of households are now estimated to have digital television.
	We welcome the fact that Switchco, the organisation which will co-ordinate the UK's switchover to digital television, is now in place.
	As we said in our manifesto, we will achieve digital switchover between 2008 and 2012 ensuring universal access to high-quality, free-to-view and subscription digital TV. This will happen region by region, and we will make sure that the interests of elderly people and other vulnerable groups are protected.

Men's Lifestyle Magazines

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent discussions she has had with (a) the Advertising Standards Authority, (b) the Press Complaints Commission and (c) others about guidelines or legislation to ensure that explicit covers on men's lifestyle magazines are kept out of the reach of children; and if she will make a statement.

James Purnell: None. The Government believe that a free press is vital in a democracy and we would not, therefore, seek to intervene in what a magazine chooses to publish. The Obscene Publications Act 1959 and the Indecent Displays Act 1981, are designed to protect children and others from exposure to inappropriate material. Furthermore, the National Federation of Retail Newsagents operates a voluntary code of practice for the display of pornographic magazines; 'lifestyle' magazines are displayed at newsagents' discretion, and customers can seek to influence how that discretion is exercised.

Royal Parks Agency

Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make it her policy to ensure that the Royal Parks Agency takes full account of the environmental and social impact on communities and areas surrounding Royal Parks whendecisions are taken to restrict car access to those parks.

David Lammy: holding answer 13 June 2005
	It is already the policy of the Royal Parks Agency to take full account of the environmental and social impact of decisions to restrict access to the Royal Parks for motor cars.
	The agency is required under the Greater London Authority Act 1999 to consult with local authorities before introducing any measures that might affect traffic on the authorities' roads. By the same token, local authorities are required to consult the agency before introducing any measures on their roads that might affect traffic on park roads.

Television Licences (Northern Ireland)

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many current television licence fees have been paid in each postcode area in Northern Ireland.

James Purnell: The BBC has responsibility for the administration of the television licensing system and the maintenance of television licence records. I have therefore asked the BBC's Head of Revenue Management to consider the question raised by the hon. Member and to write to her direct, placing a copy of the reply in the Library of the House.

Tourism Statistics

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much has been spent collating statistical information relating specifically to tourism in each year since 2000, broken down by region.

James Purnell: Five main surveys are used to assess the volume, value and nature of tourism for the UK, its countries and the regions of England.
	The contract costs for these surveys since 2000 are shown in the table along with the expenditure on the UK Tourism Satellite Account (TSA) First Steps Project and English Regions TSA report.
	
		£000
		
			  2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 
		
		
			 Survey expenditure   
			 International Passenger Survey(1) 3,390 3,590 3,610 3,580 4,080 (2)4,100 
			 UK Tourism Survey 625 625 630 650 665 810 
			 Leisure Day Visits — — 450 — — — 
			 UK Occupancy Survey 200 200 215 215 220 205 
			 Survey of Visits to Visitor Attractions 65 65 65 45 45 45 
			
			 Tourism Satellite Account expenditure
			 UK TSA First Steps Project — — — — 80 — 
			 English Regions TSA Project — — — — 45 — 
		
	
	(1)Data from the IPS also provide key statistics for areas other than tourism—such as migration and balance of payments
	(2)Estimated expenditure
	The surveys all provide data at both national and regional levels, so results are to the equal benefit of all English regions.
	Only survey contract costs have been provided, so human resource and other data collection costs have been excluded. For example, other data are collected by regional authorities in support of their tourism promotion objectives, though the amount spent is not held centrally.
	All expenditure has been rounded to the nearest £5,000.

LEADER OF THE HOUSE

Honours

Greg Pope: To ask the Leader of the House how many officials currently in his Office received honours in the recent Queen's Birthday Honours List; and at what rank of honour.

Geoff Hoon: None.

Race Relations (Amendment) Act

Keith Vaz: To ask the Leader of the House how many and what percentage of staff in his Office have received training on the general and specific duties of the Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000, broken down by (a) ethnicity and (b) grade.

Nigel Griffiths: The Office of the Leader comes within the administrative responsibility of the Privy Council Office. No specific training has taken place on the duties of the Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000 but in line with the Privy Council Office Race Equality Scheme the need to eliminate discrimination and promote equality is built into PCO recruitment, training and performance management processes.
	The Privy Council Office is committed to equality of access to development opportunities and its Management Board have signed a Statement of Principle to that effect. The Privy Council Office also includes questions on harassment and discrimination in its staff attitude survey and will be launching a programme of awareness sessions for staff later this year.

Race Relations (Amendment) Act

Keith Vaz: To ask the Leader of the House what arrangements are in place to ensure that bodies within the responsibility of his Office comply with the requirements of the Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000.

Nigel Griffiths: The Office of the Leader is not responsible for any bodies or organisations.

TRANSPORT

Acts of Parliament (Internet Access)

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will take steps to make all Acts of Parliament published before 1988 for which his Department is responsible available online.

Karen Buck: The Controller of Her Majesty's Stationery Office (HMSO) within the Cabinet Office is the Queen's Printer of Acts of Parliament, and responsible for the publication of Acts of Parliament. HMSO have considered the publication of Acts prior to 1988, which is the earliest date when these were available electronically, but have decided not to do so as many have been heavily amended and to publish them in their original form would be misleading for many users. The Government are, however, taking forward development of a Statute Law Database which will contain the fully revised and updated text of all legislation from 1275. It is expected that this will be made available to the general public during 2006.
	The DFT Publication Scheme, published in November 2002, specifies the categories of information that the Department and its agencies publish at the moment and will publish in the future and explains how to obtain that information (which may be available directly through the DFT or elsewhere). Acts of Parliament and explanatory notes are not published on the DFT site.

Air Transport (Pollution)

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what steps he is taking to reduce aircraft stacking times over London;
	(2)  what the average daily composite time spent by planes destined for (a) Heathrow and (b) Gatwick held in stacking over London is; and what daily level of greenhouse gas emissions he estimates are attributable to this practice.

Karen Buck: holding answer 14 June 2005
	The operation of air traffic control stacking procedures is a matter for National Air Traffic Services (NATS), the air navigation services provider. NATS' service performance, including reductions in delays, is incentivised by independent economic regulation by the Civil Aviation Authority, subject always to overriding safety considerations.
	Aircraft are held in stacks when demand dictates, or when they are affected by weather or other factors, and their rate of arrival would otherwise exceed the capacity of the airport to receive them.
	The Future of Air Transport White Paper noted that future growth would require a structured programme for the redesign of UK airspace, taking into account safety and environmental considerations. As part of that, we look to NATS to operate and develop air traffic control efficiently, consistently with their overall objectives, and in particular to seek to minimise stack holding as far as possible, to reduce fuel burn and emissions.
	Estimates of daily levels of greenhouse gas emissions attributable to stack-holding are not available.

Crossrail

John Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much private sector investment is expected to be made in Crossrail.

Derek Twigg: The Government are working with Transport for London on the options for funding Crossrail. It will bring forward funding proposals, including on the level of investment expected from the private sector, during the passage of the Bill.

Heathrow Airport

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when London Heathrow terminal five is expected to be operational; and if he will make a statement.

Karen Buck: BAA have announced that they expect phase one of Heathrow terminal five to be operational in March 2008, with phase two due to open in spring 2011.

Hydrocarbons Consumption (International Aviation)

John Hemming: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate his Department has made of forecast consumption of hydrocarbons by international aviation for (a) 2005, (b) 2010, (c) 2015, (d) 2020, (e) 2025 and (f) 2030; and how much carbon will be emitted as a result in each case.

Karen Buck: The table gives the Government's estimates for the forecasted amounts of emissions due to international civil aviation in the UK. More detail on the assumptions underpinning these estimates is available from Aviation and Global Warming, published by the Department for Transport in January 2004.
	The following figures relate to international aviation estimates for each decade (i.e. 2010, 2020, 2030) with interpolated figures being provided in brackets for the years that fall between the published figures. The values for fuel and CO 2 have been reckoned assuming that one tonne of carbon corresponds to 3.67 tonnes of CO 2 and that one tonne of fuel is equivalent to 3.15 tonnes of CO 2 .
	
		
			  Carbon emitted (Mt) CO 2  emitted (Mt) Fuel (Mt) 
		
		
			 2000 8.3 30.4 9.6 
			 (2005) (9.2) (33.8) (10.7) 
			 2010 10.2 37.3 11.8 
			 (2015) (12.1) (44.4) (14.1) 
			 2020 14.0 51.4 16.3 
			 2025 (15.3) (56.2) (17.8) 
			 2030 16.6 61.1 19.4

Hydrocarbons Consumption (International Aviation)

John Hemming: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the consumption of hydrocarbons within the air transport sector in England was in each five year period since 1990.

Karen Buck: The information is not available in the form requested. The following table sets out the amount of aviation turbine fuel and aviation spirit uplifted in the UK. This covers domestic and international airlines, aircraft industry own use, private and business flying and armed services.
	
		
			  Fuel used (million tonnes) 
		
		
			 1990–94 33.9 
			 1995–99 43.5 
			 2000–03 (3)42.9 
		
	
	(3)Four years only—2004 available in July.

Local Authority Transport Plans

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the (a) unclaimed and (b) returned sums from each local authority's local transport plans were in the last year for which figures are available.

Karen Buck: Since April 2002 local authorities have been able to keep the single capital pot funding allocated to them for maintenance and smaller schemes. Typically we fund major schemes by 50 per cent. borrowing approvals and 50 per cent. by grant. Before prudential borrowing was introduced, the borrowing support for major schemes was provided through Supplementary Credit Approvals (SCA), and any returned SCAs were reallocated annually.
	Following the introduction of prudential borrowing the Department carried out a final SCA reallocation exercise in respect of 2003–04 in August 2004. The amounts were as follows:
	
		Final reallocation of SCAs in respect of 2003–04 amount rounded to nearest £000
		
			 Region Authority Scheme Returned SCAs reallocated to the same scheme Returned SCAs reallocated to another authority 
		
		
			 GO-NE Newcastle Scotswood Road Improvement Phase III 181 — 
			 GO-NE Newcastle Quayside Public Transport 1,230 — 
			 GO-NE Newcastle Central Motorway East 438 — 
			 GO-NE Gateshead Centrelink 2,752 — 
			 GO-NE Tyne and Wear PTA For Lane Ends Interchange 23 — 
			 GO-NE Tyne and Wear PTA Stephenson Link 1,397 — 
			 GO-NE Tyne and Wear PTA Metro Track Dualling — 500 
			 GO-SE Oxfordshire Detrunking of the A41 1,604 — 
			 GO-SE Hampshire A3 Integrated Major Public Transport Scheme — 785 
			 GO-SE Kent Fastrack Major Scheme — 164 
			 GO-YH Leeds Leeds Supertram 6,000 — 
			 GO-NW Salford Cadishead Way — 3,073 
			 GO-EM Derbyshire Upper Derwent Charging Scheme 95 — 
			 GO-East Cambridgeshire Fordham Bypass 186 — 
			 GO-East Southend Priory Crescent 159 — 
			   Full reserve fed into reallocation — 6,478 
			   Total 14,065 11,000 
		
	
	Under the prudential borrowing system a local authority is supported by the allocation of Supported Capital Expenditure (SCE). The SCAs in the final reallocation were allocated as SCEs. A local authority may carry forward unused SCEs for a reasonable period as judged by the Department.
	The grant support for local authority public transport major schemes is paid through Public Transport Facilities Grant.
	The latest figures available for unclaimed Public Transport Facilities Grant cover 2003–04 and are detailed as follows.
	
		
			 Region Local authority Scheme Amount allocated— rounded to (£000) Amount  claimed  (£000) Difference— unclaimed in  2003–04  (£000) 
		
		
			 GONE Tyne and Wear PTE (Nexus) Tyne and Wear Track Dualling 500 155 345 
			 GONE Newcastle City Council Quayside Public Transport 1,004 658 346 
			 GONW Greater Manchester PTA Manchester Metrolink Phase 3 63,000 26,150 36,850 
			 GOSE Portsmouth CC South Hampshire Rapid Transit 1,444 0 1,444 
			 GOSE Hampshire CC South Hampshire Rapid Transit 1,217 0 1,217 
			 GOWM Warwickshire CC Nuneaton Development Project 799 610 189 
			 GONW Greater Manchester PTA Northern Orbital Quality Bus Corridor 1,600 712 888 
			 GONW  Greater Manchester PTA  South East Manchester Quality Bus  Network (SEMMMS) 3,000  892  2,108

M26/M20

John Stanley: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  whether the study into the provision of lighting at the convergence of the M26 and M20 at junction 3 has commenced; when it is expected to be completed; and what its anticipated cost is;
	(2)  how many accidents there have been at the convergence of the M26 and M20 at junction 3 in each of the last 10 years, broken down by degree of seriousness of personal injury sustained.

Stephen Ladyman: The Highways Agency has commissioned a study into the provision of lighting at junction 3 of the M20, which will be completed later this year, at a cost of approximately £3,000.
	Over the last 10 years there have been 165 accidents on the M20 starting at Trottiscliffe Road Bridge at junction 3 down to the on and off slips at junction 5. The table shows the number of accidents broken down by degree of seriousness of personal injury.
	
		Number of accidents: Boundary at Trottiscliffe Road Bridge to junction 5 before on/off slips
		
			  Fatal Serious Slight 
		
		
			 1994 0 0 6 
			 1995 0 1 4 
			 1996 2 1 10 
			 1997 0 1 7 
			 1998 0 2 10 
			 1999 1 0 11 
			 2000 1 3 27 
			 2001 2 1 20 
			 2002 0 0 13 
			 2003 1 4 12 
			 2004 0 4 21 
			 Total 7 17 141

MOT Computerisation Programme

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the timetable is for the introduction of the MOT computerisation programme; and what it was when the contract to run the system was awarded.

Stephen Ladyman: The original contracted date for the first MOT stations to be computerised was May 2002. MOT computerisation went live for the first garages from 18 April 2005.

MOT Computerisation Programme

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what progress has been made in the testing of the MOT computerisation system by the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency and Siemens Business Systems.

Stephen Ladyman: MOT computerisation underwent three phases of test and trials; one stage of office based user acceptance testing followed by two phases trialing the system in garages. The test and trials have now concluded; the system went live on 18 April 2005.

MOT Computerisation Programme

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects the MOT computerisation system to be fully operational.

Stephen Ladyman: MOT computerisation began being rolled out operationally to garages on 18 April 2005.

MOT Computerisation Programme

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment was made of the MOT computerisation trial at 50 garages in 2004; and what conclusions were reached.

Stephen Ladyman: The second stage of trials in autumn 2004 initially involved 37 garages. Faults were discovered that needed to be corrected and retested so the trial was extended by a further three weeks and was broadened to include 72 garages. Following completion of the extended trial it was concluded that the service should proceed to the final stage of trials which started in February 2005.

MOT Computerisation Programme

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when the planned installation of the MOT computerisation programme in 1,000 MOT garages is expected to be completed; when the service is due to go live; and when it will be extended to all other MOT garages.

Stephen Ladyman: MOT computerisation went live on 18 April 2005. There are currently 2,730 garages who have conducted tests using the new system. The roll out of the system to all remaining testing stations depend on continued satisfactory performance and is planned to be completed by 31 March 2006.

MOT Computerisation Programme

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the cost was at today's prices of the original contract with Siemens Business Services to run the MOT computerisation programme; when this contract was awarded; how much has been spent to date; and what estimate he has made of how much will have been spent by the time the system is operational.

Stephen Ladyman: The cost of the contract with Siemens Business Services (SBS) to run the computerised MOT service is £1.09 per test at today's prices. As roll out of the system to the garages has commenced, payments to SBS have also commenced.
	The MOT Computerisation Contract was awarded in 2000. Expenditure on the project to the start of rollout (18 April 2005) has been £24 million. Expenditure by the time the service is rolled out to all testing stations is estimated to be £30.5 million.

MOT Computerisation Programme

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on the progress of the MOT computerisation programme; and what assessment (a) has been conducted and (b) is planned of the (i) effectiveness and (ii) value for money of its implementation.

Stephen Ladyman: MOT computerisation went live in garages on 18 April 2005. To date 2,730 garages have used the new system and in excess of 340,000 tests have been recorded onto the database.
	A report on the effectiveness and value for money of the implementation of the service was conducted by the National Audit Office during 2004.

Race Relations

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many and what percentage of staff in his Department have received training on the general and specific duties of the Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000, broken down by (a) ethnicity and (b) grade.

Karen Buck: All staff within the Department for Transport and its Executive agencies who are responsible for conducting Race Impact Assessments have attended training or are due to attend. This includes both the general and the specific duty. Further impact assessment training will be delivered as and when there is a need to train more assessors.
	Information about the Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000, the General and Specific Duty, and the Race Equality Scheme 2005–08 has been communicated to all staff via internal bulletins, intranet sites, induction training and included within diversity and equality training.
	
		Number of staff who have attended training specifically on impact assessments. general and specific duty within the Department and Executive agencies
		
			 Pay band White Black Asian Mixed ethnic background Ethnicity other Ethnicity unknown 
		
		
			 PBS1 — — — — — — 
			 PBS3 — — — — — — 
			 AA 1 — — — — — 
			 AO 8 1 — — — 2 
			 EO 30 2 1 1 — 1 
			 HEO 36 1 1 — — 15 
			 SEO 23 1 — — — 6 
			 Grade 7 20 — 1 — — — 
			 Grade 6 11 — — — 1 1 
			 PB8 3 — — — — — 
			 SCS 26 — — — — — 
			 Total staff 158 5 3 1 1 26 
		
	
	Note:
	Total staff=194
	Future training planned for 2005–06
	Further training for impact assessments is scheduled within in some Executive agencies for 2005 to increase the number of staff trained in this area.
	The central Department is also reviewing how to train all staff in the general and specific duty in 2005–06. This would increase the number of staff trained in the centre by a further 1,500 which is being considered to be mandatory training.
	In addition, DVLA is also currently reviewing the training options available to include general and specific duty training to all staff, and expects to start this training later in 2005. This would involve training a further 7,000 members of staff.

Rail Passengers Council

Mike Gapes: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how the consultants Odgers, Ray and Berndtson conducting the selection process for the members of the Rail Passengers Council were chosen.

Derek Twigg: The Department for Transport selected Odgers, Ray and Berndtson from the list of 16 firms included in the Cabinet Office executive search call off contract to assist in the appointment of members of the Rail Passengers Council.

Railways

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the Department's plans are for the East Coast Main Line.

Derek Twigg: The new East Coast Inter City franchise commenced on 1 May 2005. Among the obligations within the new franchise are additional services to Leeds and the development of a study into the electrification of the rail network between Neville Hill and Hambleton South Junction. Later this month the SRA plans to publish a review summarising the work to date on the supply and demand for ECML train services and the options that can be considered for the future. It is planned that Network Rail, who have the responsibility for route utilisation, will consult further on the requirements for the line.

Railways

Alan Milburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many instances of trespass there were on railways in the UK in each of the last five years.

Derek Twigg: According to the rail industry's Safety Management Information System (SMIS) data, the total numbers of trespass cases recorded on the national rail network in Great Britain for each of the last five years are as follows:
	
		
			  Trespass cases recorded 
		
		
			 2000 11,147 
			 2001 11,487 
			 2002 12,034 
			 2003 11,933 
			 2004 11,196

Railways

Alan Milburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many fatalities arising from trespass there were on railways in the UK in each of the last five years.

Derek Twigg: According to the rail industry's Safety Management Information System (SMIS), fatalities due to trespass in the Great Britain in each of the last five years are as follows:
	
		
			  Suicides and suspected suicides Other trespasser fatalities Total fatalities 
		
		
			 2000 205 63 268 
			 2001 190 52 242 
			 2002 207 48 255 
			 2003 183 49 232 
			 2004 196 37 233

Railways

Alan Milburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the average fine for trespass on railways in the UK was in each of the last five years.

Derek Twigg: This information is not held centrally.

Railways

Alan Milburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the maximum fine available for trespass on UK railways was in each of the last five years.

Derek Twigg: In each of the last five years, the maximum fine for trespassing on the railways in contravention of section 55(1) of the British Transport Commission Act 1949 has been £1,000.

Road Charging

John Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what account will be taken in drawing up further proposals for road charging of the effects of the London congestion charge on (a) numbers of people travelling and (b) methods of transport used;
	(2)  what estimate the Department has made of the cost of gantry construction and installation in connection with a road pricing system in the whole of the United Kingdom.

Stephen Ladyman: I refer the hon. Member to my answer given today to the hon. Members for Dundee, East (Stewart Hosie) and for Romford (Andrew Rosindell).

Road Charging

Stewart Hosie: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what account will be taken of (a) engine size, (b) emissions and (c) fuel efficiency when calculating road charging prices;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the likely effects on tourism of a road charging scheme;
	(3)  if he will make a statement on plans for a pay-as-you-go drive system.

Stephen Ladyman: In line with its manifesto commitments, the Government will examine the potential of moving away from the current system of motoring taxation towards a national system of road pricing.
	The Feasibility Study of Road Pricing in the UK, published by the Department for Transport in July 2004, concluded that a scheme could reduce congestion by some 40 per cent. and achieve benefits of up to £12 billion a year in time savings and increased reliability. This would bring benefits for the economy as a whole and individuals using the road network for business and leisure.
	The Feasibility Study recognised that before road pricing could be implemented much more work would need to be done. It is too early to specify all the details of a scheme, or to determine precisely its impacts. It will be important to learn from the experiences of charging schemes already in place, such as the London Congestion Charge. We need to design a system that works at a reasonable cost, with clear benefits to road users as well as the country as a whole. Key considerations include the need to safeguard our environmental objectives, respect privacy and the setting of prices.
	More detailed work is now being taken forward to allow a decision to be made about whether national road pricing should be introduced and what form it should take.

Safety Cameras

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many safety cameras are operated by each safety camera partnership in England, broken down by (a) fixed cameras and (b) mobile cameras.

Stephen Ladyman: For information on the number of fixed and mobile speed camera sites broken down by partnership, I refer to my answer of 9 June 2005, Official Report, columns 617–19W. Further detailed information is available from partnerships.

South Hampshire Light Rail Scheme

Peter Viggers: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when the Government will announce their decision on the funding of the revised South Hampshire Light Rail Scheme.

Derek Twigg: holding answer 15 June 2005
	We will announce our decision soon.

Traffic Accidents (London)

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many (a) fatal and (b) non-fatal traffic accidents there were in (i) Brent, East and (ii) each London borough in each year since 1997.

Stephen Ladyman: The numbers of fatal and non-fatal accidents in the Brent, East parliamentary constituency for the years 1997 to 2003 (the latest year available) are shown in the following table.
	
		Accidents by severity: Brent East constituency 1997 to 2003 -- Accidents
		
			  Fatal Injury 
		
		
			 1997 2 459 
			 1998 2 457 
			 1999 2 461 
			 2000 5 509 
			 2001 2 453 
			 2002 1 422 
			 2003 0 414 
		
	
	The equivalent information for each London borough is shown in the following table.
	
		Accidents by severity: London boroughs 1997–03 -- Accidents
		
			  1997 1998 
			 Local authority Fatal Injured All Fatal Injured All 
		
		
			 Westminster 16 2,525 2,541 8 2,627 2,635 
			 Camden 13 1,470 1,483 5 1,424 1,429 
			 Islington 6 1,168 1,174 7 1,282 1,289 
			 Hackney 7 1,172 1,179 9 1,162 1,171 
			 Tower Hamlets 8 1,025 1,033 6 1,144 1,150 
			 Greenwich 10 1,068 1,078 10 1,025 1,035 
			 Lewisham 5 1,357 1,362 8 1,310 1,318 
			 Southwark 8 1,547 1,555 9 1,591 1,600 
			 Lambeth 12 1,808 1,820 13 1,788 1,801 
			 Wandsworth 7 1,338 1,345 6 1,236 1,242 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 6 937 943 6 874 880 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 8 1,067 1,075 8 1,056 1,064 
			 Waltham Forest 8 924 932 7 980 987 
			 Redbridge 8 1,090 1,098 5 1,083 1,088 
			 Havering 8 1,056 1,064 4 1,057 1,061 
			 Barking and Dagenham 5 781 786 3 750 753 
			 Newham 3 1,117 1,120 2 1,160 1,162 
			 Bexley 4 726 730 6 690 696 
			 Bromley 8 1,233 1,241 10 1,166 1,176 
			 Croydon 5 1,538 1,543 7 1,486 1,493 
			 Sutton 2 710 712 3 680 683 
			 Merton 7 694 701 4 691 695 
			 Kingston upon Thames 8 654 662 6 614 620 
			 Richmond upon Thames 3 736 739 4 668 672 
			 Hounslow 11 1,330 1,341 9 1,227 1,236 
			 Hillingdon 18 1,294 1,312 5 1,170 1,175 
			 Ealing 11 1,620 1,631 8 1,491 1,499 
			 Brent 6 1,344 1,350 11 1,302 1,313 
			 Harrow 5 713 718 6 680 686 
			 Barnet 14 1,554 1,568 10 1,610 1,620 
			 Haringey 6 989 995 2 1,057 1,059 
			 Enfield 14 1,406 1,420 9 1,415 1,424 
			 London Airport 0 124 124 0 98 98 
			 City of London 3 458 461 4 444 448 
			 Greater London 263 38,573 38,836 220 38,038 38,258 
		
	
	
		Accidents
		
			  1999 2000 
			 Local authority Fatal Injured All Fatal Injured All 
		
		
			 Westminster 12 2,582 2,594 19 2,497 2,516 
			 Camden 10 1,441 1,451 8 1,426 1,434 
			 Islington 9 1,237 1,246 10 1,271 1,281 
			 Hackney 4 1,227 1,231 9 1,202 1,211 
			 Tower Hamlets 13 1,189 1,202 10 1,130 1,140 
			 Greenwich 4 1,059 1,063 4 1,066 1,070 
			 Lewisham 6 1,333 1,339 7 1,255 1,262 
			 Southwark 7 1,613 1,620 10 1,505 1,515 
			 Lambeth 3 1,903 1,906 10 1,791 1,801 
			 Wandsworth 9 1,232 1,241 9 1,256 1,265 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 6 949 955 4 922 926 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 6 1,030 1,036 5 1,050 1,055 
			 Waltham Forest 5 967 972 10 977 987 
			 Redbridge 6 1,153 1,159 14 1,157 1,171 
			 Havering 13 1,019 1,032 9 817 826 
			 Barking and Dagenham 6 749 755 6 765 111 
			 Newham 6 1,158 1,164 3 1,108 1,111 
			 Bexley 3 725 728 5 710 715 
			 Bromley 14 1,141 1,155 9 1,004 1,013 
			 Croydon 7 1,552 1,559 15 1,401 1,416 
			 Sutton 8 655 663 7 624 631 
			 Merton 5 696 701 5 691 696 
			 Kingston upon Thames 3 538 541 3 483 486 
			 Richmond upon Thames 4 625 629 2 677 679 
			 Hounslow 8 1,096 1,104 7 1,215 1,222 
			 Hillingdon 15 1,155 1,170 10 1,223 1,233 
			 Ealing 17 1,595 1,612 8 1,527 1,535 
			 Brent 11 1,327 1,338 14 1,323 1,337 
			 Harrow 8 692 700 7 607 614 
			 Barnet 15 1,563 1,578 8 1,543 1,551 
			 Haringey 2 983 985 7 1,244 1,251 
			 Enfield 8 1,377 1,385 12 1,434 1,446 
			 London Airport 0 84 84 0 107 107 
			 City of London 1 469 470 4 413 417 
			 Greater London 254 38,114 38,368 270 37,421 37,691 
		
	
	
		Accidents
		
			  2001 2002 
			 Local authority Fatal Injured All Fatal Injured All 
		
		
			 Westminster 15 2,377 2,392 15 2,095 2,110 
			 Camden 9 1,432 1,441 8 1,217 1,225 
			 Islington 8 1,237 1,245 8 1,096 1,104 
			 Hackney 8 1,234 1,242 10 1,027 1,037 
			 Tower Hamlets 5 1,165 1,170 10 920 930 
			 Greenwich 13 1,098 1,111 9 1,035 1,044 
			 Lewisham 14 1,238 1,252 9 1,200 1,209 
			 Southwark 14 1,521 1,535 8 1,438 1,446 
			 Lambeth 16 1,714 1,730 9 1,642 1,651 
			 Wandsworth 6 1,229 1,235 5 1,204 1,209 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 6 892 898 4 794 798 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 7 850 857 7 741 748 
			 Waltham Forest 11 871 882 6 839 845 
			 Redbridge 10 1,183 1,193 9 1,021 1,030 
			 Havering 13 960 973 7 908 915 
			 Barking and Dagenham 3 693 696 9 607 616 
			 Newham 8 1,094 1,102 6 950 956 
			 Bexley 8 712 720 8 741 749 
			 Bromley 9 1,013 1,022 9 1,097 1,106 
			 Croydon 8 1,285 1,293 13 1,217 1,230 
			 Sutton 5 648 653 6 532 538 
			 Merton 5 662 667 5 656 661 
			 Kingston upon Thames 4 460 464 3 444 447 
			 Richmond upon Thames 2 672 674 7 592 599 
			 Hounslow 11 1,184 1,195 10 1,093 1,103 
			 Hillingdon 5 1,191 1,196 6 1,133 1,139 
			 Ealing 16 1,571 1,587 16 1,477 1,493 
			 Brent 9 1,227 1,236 4 1,195 1,199 
			 Harrow 5 640 645 4 556 560 
			 Barnet 11 1,459 1,470 14 1,443 1,457 
			 Haringey 13 1,125 1,138 12 1,004 1,016 
			 Enfield 14 1,317 1,331 7 1,372 1,379 
			 London Airport 1 82 83 1 69 70 
			 City of London 2 421 423 3 378 381 
			 Greater London 294 36,457 36,751 267 33,733 34,000 
		
	
	
		Accidents
		
			  2003 
			 Local authority Fatal Injured All 
		
		
			 Westminster 11 2,115 2,126 
			 Camden 5 1,137 1,142 
			 Islington 9 991 1,000 
			 Hackney 4 1,001 1,005 
			 Tower Hamlets 5 894 899 
			 Greenwich 7 998 1,005 
			 Lewisham 11 1,156 1,167 
			 Southwark 4 1,411 1,415 
			 Lambeth 13 1,492 1,505 
			 Wandsworth 10 1,019 1,029 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 6 786 792 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 9 719 728 
			 Waltham Forest 6 832 838 
			 Redbridge 7 987 994 
			 Havering 16 831 847 
			 Barking and Dagenham 6 574 580 
			 Newham 4 915 919 
			 Bexley 4 601 605 
			 Bromley 13 874 887 
			 Croydon 13 1,132 1,145 
			 Sutton 6 541 547 
			 Merton 6 587 593 
			 Kingston upon Thames 3 429 432 
			 Richmond upon Thames 2 609 611 
			 Hounslow 7 1,013 1,020 
			 Hillingdon 5 1,047 1,052 
			 Ealing 17 1,369 1,386 
			 Brent 2 1,137 1,139 
			 Harrow 9 539 548 
			 Barnet 19 1,336 1,355 
			 Haringey 12 986 998 
			 Enfield 7 1,190 1,197 
			 London Airport 0 44 44 
			 City of London 1 293 294 
			 Greater London 259 31,585 31,844

Vehicle Disposal

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what information he has about the average percentage of vehicle components removed from vehicles for reuse at end-of-life disposal in each year since 1985.

Malcolm Wicks: I have been asked to reply.
	Although detailed figures are not routinely collected, various studies by Government and industry in recent years estimate that parts for re-use accounts for between 6 per cent. and 11 per cent. of the total weight of end-of-life vehicles (ELVs).

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

Affordable Homes

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what central Government assistance is available to Shrewsbury and Atcham borough council to provide the number of affordable homes they have been set.

Yvette Cooper: The main funding for affordable housing is provided through the Housing Corporation's Approved Development Programme. Decisions on the allocation of these funds are taken in the light of priorities set out in Regional Housing Strategies, reflecting provision for new housing in the planning system, and the quality and value for money in bids received from housing associations and other bodies. Around £1.2 million in total has been allocated for the two years 2004–05 and 2005–06.
	There are other funding streams, e.g. the private finance initiative, the new first-time buyer initiative, which, directly or indirectly, support the provision of additional affordable housing. It is also open to local authorities to put funds into this where it is a local priority.

BMG Research (Surveys)

Tim Loughton: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many surveys have been sent out to residents in (a) England, (b) Adur and (c) Worthing on behalf of his Department by BMG Research entitled, Your views on your local council"; and who pays for the surveys.

Phil Woolas: BMG have sent 8,000 questionnaires to individuals across England as part of a national survey of public satisfaction with local government and its services they are undertaking for the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister. As part of this sample, 10 questionnaires were mailed to individuals in Adur and 22 to individuals in Worthing.
	The survey is funded from the ODPM Local and Regional Government Research Programme.

BMG Research (Surveys)

Tim Loughton: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how much has been paid to BMG Research for surveys on residents' views on local councils.

Phil Woolas: BMG will be paid £36,000 plus VAT by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister for the national survey of public satisfaction with local government and its services. This survey is currently in the field.

Business Rates

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will publish figures for the average business rates bill in each Government Office region in each year since 1997–98, including the estimated average figures for 2005–06.

Phil Woolas: The average business rates bill in each Government Office region in each year since 1997–98, including the estimated average figures for 2005–06, are shown in the following table.
	
		
			  1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 
		
		
			 North East 5,501 5,978 6,159 6,968 7,305 
			 North West 5,215 5,589 5,770 6,825 7,273 
			 Yorkshire and the  Humber 5,381 5,869 6,005 6,954 7,433 
			 East Midlands 5,716 6,142 6,251 7,237 7,670 
			 West Midlands 5,686 6,250 6,487 7,588 7,756 
			 Eastern 7,026 7,125 7,080 8,096 8,476 
			 London 10,057 10,433 9,792 12,033 12,842 
			 South East 7,208 7,759 7,796 9,212 9,705 
			 South West 7,087 5,295 5,412 6,332 6,570 
		
	
	
		
			  2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 
		
		
			 North East 7,498 7,518 7,701 8,367 
			 North West 7,646 7,708 7,793 8,086 
			 Yorkshire and the  Humber 7,664 7,623 7,773 8,317 
			 East Midlands 7,846 7,893 7,955 8,477 
			 West Midlands 8,003 8,055 8,192 8,672 
			 Eastern 8,685 8,620 8,740 9,575 
			 London 13,753 14,124 14,484 15,705 
			 South East 10,045 10,053 10,252 11,124 
			 South West 6,658 6,614 6,662 7,195

Business Rates

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister 
	(1) what the estimated average business rates bill was in each billing authority in England in 2004–05; and what the estimated level is for 2005–06;
	(2)  what the net yield from business rates was in each billing authority in England in 2004–05; and what the estimated level is for 2005–06.

Phil Woolas: The information has been made available in the Library of the House.

Canal Restoration

Michael Fabricant: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will make a statement on the impact of planning policy guidance 13 on the restoration of canals and the route such canals take.

Yvette Cooper: Planning policy guidance note (PPG) 13 states that proposals for waterside development should seek to enhance the use, enjoyment and setting of the adjacent waterway. Local authorities should work with all those concerned in the inland waterways industry to develop the potential of inland waterways. In liaison with British Waterways or other navigation authorities, the Environment Agency in its regulatory capacity, the Inland Waterways Association and local waterway organisations, local authorities should identify and where appropriate protect disused waterways where there is a reasonable degree of certainty of a restoration project proceeding within the plan period.

Car Boot Sales

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what assessment he has made of the operation of regulations on car boot sales; and if he will make a statement.

Yvette Cooper: In January 2002, a consultation paper was issued on possible options for change to the planning regulations over temporary uses, including car boot sales. The paper sought views from all interested parties. The overwhelming consensus in response to the consultation paper was to retain the existing provisions. In consequence, we announced on 21 August 2002 that there would be no change to the temporary use planning provisions.

Chief Executives

John Hemming: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what his Department's policy is on whether local authorities should be required to have a chief executive.

Phil Woolas: The Local Government and Housing Act 1989 provides that each principal local authority must designate one of its officers as a Head of Paid Service, who undertakes the overall management of the authority.

Construction (Litchfield)

Michael Fabricant: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will meet the Chief Executive of Staffordshire county council to discuss (a) the route of the Lichfield southern bypass, (b) the construction of associated housing by Persimmon Homes and (c) the impact on the route of the restored Lichfield canal.

Yvette Cooper: This is a local issue for Staffordshire county council, Lichfield district council and the Lichfield and Hatherton Canals Restoration Trust to resolve.

Council Tax

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether the average council tax per dwelling figures compiled by his Department are a mean or median measure; and for what reason the measure is used.

Phil Woolas: The average council tax per dwelling is a mean, rather than a median, measure. It is defined as the council tax requirement divided by the number of chargeable dwellings in an area.
	The average council tax per dwelling measure is used to compare the amounts of council tax payable in different local authority areas.

Council Tax

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether (a) caravans, (b) stand-alone private garages, (c) armed forces barracks, (d) hostels and (e) properties occupied by squatters, are liable for council tax.

Phil Woolas: The information requested is as follows:
	(a) Caravans are not in themselves subject to council tax, but liability for council tax may arise in respect of the land (pitch) on which the caravan stands. A pitch occupied by a caravan which is somebody's sole or main residence is deemed to be a dwelling" for council tax purposes and will therefore attract a council tax liability in the same way as other domestic types of property.
	(b) Generally, a stand alone private garage is only liable for council tax to the extent that it forms part of a larger property which itself is liable for council tax.
	(c) Living accommodation for UK armed forces which is owned by the Ministry of Defence is exempt from council tax. Contributions in lieu of council tax are payable to billing authorities by the Ministry of Defence to broadly match the amount of council tax which would otherwise have been payable. Service personnel make a contribution to this cost from their wages.
	(d) Hostels—as defined in the Council Tax (Discount Disregards) Order 1992—are liable for council tax. The owner, rather than the residents, will be liable for paying the council tax.
	(e) Properties occupied by squatters will be liable for council tax in the same way as any other dwellings.

Council Tax

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether there is a de minimis rule for small dwellings for the purposes of council tax valuation.

Phil Woolas: No.

Council Tax

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister when the revised council tax valuation list will be available to the public following the council tax revaluation in England.

Phil Woolas: The draft list will be made available on 1 September 2006 and the final list will be made available on 1 April 2007.

Council Tax

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the average collection rate was for council tax for Travellers in the last year for which figures are available.

Phil Woolas: The information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Council Tax

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether asylum seekers without leave to remain are liable for council tax.

Phil Woolas: The liability of asylum seekers for council tax depends on the circumstances of the particular case.
	Liability for council tax normally falls to the residents of a dwelling. However, where accommodation is provided to asylum seekers under Section 95 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999, then liability falls to the owner.

Council Tax

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many, and what proportion of appeals to (a) the valuation tribunal and (b) the High Court, against a council tax valuation, were successful in the last year for which figures are available.

Phil Woolas: In 2004–05, 4,903 council tax appeals against valuation were decided by valuation tribunals in England. 723 (14.7 per cent.) appeals were successful.
	In the same year, one decision of a valuation tribunal in England relating to a council tax appeal against valuation was appealed to the High Court. To date, this appeal remains outstanding.

Deprived Areas

Iain Wright: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what steps are being taken to encourage enterprise and entrepreneurialism in deprived areas.

Phil Woolas: In the March 2005 Budget, my right hon. Friend the Chancellor announced proposals for a new Local Enterprise Growth Initiative (LEGI) with the aim to provide flexible, devolved investment in the most deprived areas to support locally-developed and owned proposals that pursue new or proven ways of stimulating economic activity and productivity through enterprise development.
	LEGI will be worth £300 million over the three years 2006–07 to 2008–09 and £10 million will be made available this year to help eligible areas develop proposals. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is consulting on the proposals until 30 June 2005 and would welcome views from all stakeholders.
	The initiative have been designed to complement the work of the Regional Development Agencies and existing Government initiatives for increasing enterprise and entrepreneurship in deprived areas, such as the Phoenix Fund, the Enterprise Areas scheme, the Under-served Markets Project and the recently developed business engagement toolkit for local strategic partnerships.

Housing (Overcrowding)

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what proportion of social housing tenants who are (a) white and (b) black or ethnic minority live in overcrowded accommodation.

Yvette Cooper: It is estimated that in 2003–04 in England the proportion of social housing tenants living in accommodation which failed the bedroom standard" were (a) 3 per cent. for white households and (b) 14 per cent. for black and minority ethnic households. The figures are derived from the Survey of English Housing.

Local Authorities (Expenditure/Indemnities)

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will publish figures listing the capital expenditure for each local authority in England in the latest year for which figures are available.

Phil Woolas: The figures requested have been made available in the Library of the House and relate to the financial year 2003–04, the latest year for which outturn figures are available.

Local Authorities (Expenditure/Indemnities)

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will revise the Local Authorities (Indemnities for Members and Officers) Order 2004 to provide for circumstances in which a member of a minority party on a council seeks an indemnity from a council which is refused (a) as a result of the votes of the majority party and (b) where a technical breach of the code has been found, but no penalty imposed and no further action taken.

Phil Woolas: The Government have no plans to amend the Local Authorities (Indemnities for Members and Officers) Order 2004. These issues were considered before the Order was made.

Local Government Standards Board

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will require the Local Government Standards Board (a) to account separately for the costs of cases that were (i) proven and (ii) dismissed and (b) further to break down those costs by stage of the investigation and adjudication procedure; and if he will make a statement.

Phil Woolas: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has no plans to require the Standards Board for England to provide information in the form referred to.

Local Government Standards Board

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many of the cases disposed of (a) directly by the Standards Board, (b) after an adjudication panel and (c) after a local standards committee hearing (i) were dismissed, (ii) were found proven but no penalty imposed and (iii) were found to be vexatious complaints in each of the last three years.

Phil Woolas: This information requested is in the table.
	
		
			 Cases 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 
		
		
			 Not referred for investigation 1,689 2,144 3,029 
			 Investigations producing finding of no evidence of a breach of the code of conduct 113 154 310 
			 Investigations producing finding that no action is required in respect of the matters under investigation 225 462 947 
			 Total number of determinations made by the adjudication panel for England 30 130 59 
			 Adjudication panel determinations that there was no breach of the code of conduct 1 4 8 
			 Adjudication panel determinations that no further action is required 0 3 7 
			 Total number of determinations made by local standards committees (4)n/a 39 72 
			 Local standards committees' determinations that there was no evidence of a breach of the code of conduct (4)n/a 2 4 
			 Local standards committees' determinations that no further action is required (4)n/a 3 8 
		
	
	(4)Regulations providing for cases to be referred to local standards committees for investigation and determination were not in place in 2002–03.
	The Standards Board does not hold information on the number of apparently 'vexatious' complaints received.

Lyons Review

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether the Lyons Review will consider the introduction of a capital value system in its assessment of local government finance.

Phil Woolas: It is for Sir Michael Lyons to decide what to consider within his terms of reference.

National Spatial Address Infrastructure

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what access political parties will have to the National Spatial Address Infrastructure database; and if he will make a statement.

Phil Woolas: The proposed specification and plans to deliver the National Spatial Address Infrastructure are set out in the outline prospectus published by The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister on 26 May 2005.
	The outline prospectus sets out a governance process that will encourage participation at a number of levels.
	The Government are seeking comments from interested parties on a range of issues set out in the outline prospectus, by the end of June 2005. These issues include an outline of supply arrangements for the National Spatial Address Infrastructure and it would be inappropriate to comment on specific access issues at this stage.

Pensions

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister when the Government intends to revoke the local government pension scheme (amendment) (No. 2) regulations 2004.

Phil Woolas: My right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister is considering responses received to the recently concluded statutory consultation exercise on draft regulations which have the effect of revoking the local government pension scheme (amendment) (No 2) regulations 2004. A decision will be issued in due course.

Pensions

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the current asset value of the Local Government Pension Scheme is (a) in England and (b) across the United Kingdom.

Phil Woolas: The actuarial valuation of the local government pension scheme in England and Wales as at 31 March 2004 shows the asset value for funds in England to be £80.7 billion and £4.8 billion for funds in Wales. No comparable figure is available for the remainder of the UK.

Pensions

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what proportion of the local government pension scheme's liabilities are funded.

Phil Woolas: The actuarial valuation exercise for the local government pension scheme in England and Wales, as at 31 March 2004, showed that the 89 separate funds which make up the scheme had assets covering 73 per cent. of their liabilities, as assessed by the independent actuaries. The actuaries have set new employers' contribution rates, effective from 1 April 2005, in each of these funds to secure their ongoing solvency.

Performance Targets

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what plans the Government have to reduce the number of performance targets on local authorities.

Phil Woolas: In March this year the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister published 'Securing better outcomes: developing a new performance framework' as part of our work on a 10 year strategy for local government. We highlighted the need to find a better balance between national and local targets for local government and its partners and to reduce the number of targets not directly related to PSAs or national standards. Over the coming months we will be considering how to achieve these aims.

Public Toilets

John Hemming: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister pursuant to the answer of 8 June 2005, Official Report, column 563W, on public toilets, what assessment his Department has made of the reasons for the reduction in the number of public toilets; and what assessment he has made of the public health and environmental consequences of the change.

Phil Woolas: As stated in my previous answer on 8 June 2005, Official Report, column 563W, the provision and maintenance of toilets in public places is at the discretion of local authorities who have, under section 87 of the Public Health Act 1936, a power to provide public conveniences, but no duty to do so.
	It is therefore for individual local authorities to decide whether or not to provide public toilets and, if so, how many. In doing this, each local authority must balance the competing priorities of a whole range of services. The vast majority of government support is paid as a block grant, so that local authorities have considerable freedom to determine their own spending priorities.

Supporting People Programme

Andrew Smith: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister when he expects to publish the revised formula for the allocation of funds for Supporting People; and what consultation he plans to undertake on the formula.

Phil Woolas: The current version of the Supporting People distribution formula is being developed in cooperation with representatives from local government. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister plans to consult on a revised model for distributing funds shortly.

Unitary Authorities

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will rule out establishing unitary authorities in areas where a referendum has not given the assent of the people; and if he will make a statement.

Phil Woolas: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Meriden (Mrs. Spelman) on 6 June 2005, Official Report, columns 406–07.

Voluntary Organisations (Grants)

Sarah Teather: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how much his Department gave in grants to voluntary organisations in each London borough in the last year for which figures are available.

Yvette Cooper: This information is not collected centrally by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister across all programmes.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Animal Welfare

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans she has to bring forward legislation to replace the testing of animals under the REACH proposals with a testing strategy that uses advanced scientific techniques for (a) safety testing and (b) risk assessment without using animals; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: The REACH proposals will require industry to provide data on chemicals to enable an assessment to be made of their potential harm to the environment and human health. There will in some cases be a legal requirement for the use of animals for safety testing in much the same way as the current requirements for chemicals under existing regimes. However, the REACH regulation will require that all existing data from animal tests and alternative methods of generating data are taken into consideration before any new animal testing is carried out.
	The Government are committed to minimising the numbers of animals used for safety testing and risk assessments under REACH and is supporting work aimed at the development of integrated testing strategies based on existing data, advanced modelling approaches and in vitro testing methods that do not require the use of animals. However, before the new methods can be accepted by regulatory authorities, there is a need for the methods to be fully validated as fit for purpose. It is also very unlikely that alternative methods will be available in the short term for certain toxicity endpoints, particularly those involving long-term exposure to chemicals.

Beavers

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will assess the effects of introducing beavers in Scotland to the ecology of the UK; and what representations she has received in connection with plans by the Scottish Executive to proceed with release of beavers in Scotland from (a) English Nature and (b) other bodies and organisations.

Jim Knight: Responsibility for nature conservation in Scotland is devolved to the Scottish Parliament. No re-introduction of beavers into the wild in Scotland can take place without a licence granted by the Scottish Executive. Scottish Ministers are currently considering an application from Scottish Natural Heritage to re-introduce beavers but have not yet reached a conclusion.
	English Nature supports the proposal by Scottish Natural Heritage, on the grounds that it is properly researched and meets the requirements of the IUCN guidelines on introductions. However, they recognise that the re-introduction of a species that has been absent for several hundred years must proceed with great care, and address the concerns of a wide variety of interest groups. They advise that the next step should be to undertake a small scale trial re-introduction to improve predictions on impact and spread.
	No other representations have been received on this issue by Defra.

Carbon Emissions

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the level of carbon emissions from oil and gas producers operating in the North Sea was in the last period for which figures are available; what allocation they have been awarded under the EU Emissions Trading Scheme; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: The Approved National Allocation Plan for the EU Emissions Trading Scheme, as published on 24 May, details the historic emissions and allocation methodology for the distribution of allowances to all sectors and installations covered by the scheme. Annual emissions from the 88 offshore installations covered by the EU ETS were 14.3 million tonnes carbon dioxide in 2003. The annual allocation to offshore installations in Phase I (2005–07) of the Scheme is 14.4 million allowances.

Carbon Emissions

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether the Government are on target to reduce carbon emissions (a) as agreed under the Kyoto protocol and (b) by 20 per cent. by 2010.

Elliot Morley: Estimates published in March this year suggest that in 2004 UK greenhouse gas emissions were provisionally about 12.5 per cent. below base year levels. The data released in March also indicate that, even without the further action currently being considered under the review of the UK Climate Change Programme, the UK will be about 20 per cent. below base year levels in 2010. The UK is therefore on course to meet its Kyoto protocol commitment to reduce emissions of a basket of six greenhouse gases by 12.5 per cent. below base level years by 2008–12. This is a significant achievement. On the basis of existing policies, emissions of carbon dioxide are projected to be about 13 per cent. below the 1990 level in 2010. We therefore recognise that more needs to be done if we are to meet our more challenging domestic goal to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 20 per cent. below 1990 levels by 2010.

Carbon Emissions

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what her most recent estimate is of the level of UK carbon emissions resulting in a year from electrical appliances being left in standby mode.

Elliot Morley: The most recent estimate by the Government's Market Transformation Programme (MTP) is that taken together consumer electronics, home computing equipment, domestic cooking equipment and office equipment in the UK produced approximately 800,000 tonnes of carbon (c7 TWh) in the UK during 2004.
	We are also aware that there is further energy consumption from white goods such as washing machines and dishwashers which are switched on awaiting use or after they have completed their wash cycles; consumer electronic equipment using external power supplies (eg domestic portable telephones) that continue to consume energy when plugged in but not in use; and domestic personal computer equipment where the stand-by facilities are not properly enabled. Taken together, these sources of consumption may bring the overall figure to around 1 million tonnes of carbon.
	In order to try to tackle this problem the Market Transformation Programme (www.mtprog.com) has been encouraging manufacturers to reduce both the on" and the stand-by power consumption of household appliances through the adoption of design improvements, voluntary codes of conduct, and best practice guidelines and targets. This approach has been fairly successful in respect of televisions: an EU-wide voluntary agreement will mean that the majority of new televisions sold in the UK now consume around 1 watt of power in stand-by mode rather than the 3–8 watts consumed by older models. This agreement is currently being extended to cover other consumer electronics.
	A similar agreement for external power supplies aims to encourage new power supplies consuming around half a watt in stand-by mode compared to the present average of just over 2 watts.
	The recently agreed Framework Directive for the Eco-design of Energy Using Products (EUP), which is expected to come into force later this year will provide a streamlined and effective route for setting EU-wide environmental requirements for traded goods. EUP requires the Commission and member states to treat the issue of stand by energy consumption as a priority area for consideration. The UK will work proactively with the Commission and other member states to influence and speed the delivery of measures under EUP.
	In addition the Government's initiative on sustainable procurement, announced in the autumn of 2003, includes a requirement for Government Departments which purchase computers and televisions to specify low stand-by power requirements.

Carbon Emissions

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate she has made of the daily energy consumption resulting from the use of standby units on televisions; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: The Government's Market Transformation Programme estimates that in 2004 the 62 million television sets in use in the UK consumed just over 3 million Kwh per day while in stand by mode—approximately 8 per cent. of their total average daily energy consumption.
	The Market Transformation programme estimates that by 2010 the number of televisions in use in the UK will rise to 67 million.
	In order to try to reduce the overall energy consumed by televisions the Market Transformation Programme (www.mtprog.com) has been encouraging manufacturers to reduce both the on" and the stand-by" power consumption of televisions through the adoption of design improvements, an EU wide voluntary code of conduct, and best practice guidelines and targets.
	The EU-wide voluntary agreement on televisions has been fairly successful in reducing the average energy consumed by televisions in stand-by mode with the majority of new televisions sold in the UK soon to consume around 1 watt of power in stand-by mode rather than the 3–8 watts consumed by older models. This agreement is in the process of being extended to cover other consumer electronic equipment.
	The recently agreed Framework Directive for the Eco-design of Energy Using Products (EUP), which is expected to come into force later this year will provide a streamlined and effective route for setting EU-wide environmental requirements for traded goods. EUP requires the Commission and member states to treat the issue of stand by energy consumption as a priority area for consideration. The UK will work proactively with the Commission and other member states to influence and speed the delivery of measures under EUP.
	In addition the Government's initiative on sustainable procurement, announced in the autumn of 2003, includes a requirement for Government Departments which purchase televisions to specify televisions with stand-by power requirements of less that 1 watt.

Endangered Species

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what programmes the Government sponsors to protect and encourage the breeding of endangered species.

Jim Knight: The Government are taking a wide range of measures to protect and conserve endangered species in this country and also internationally through mechanisms such as international conservation agreements and the Government's funding schemes (for example, the Darwin Initiative and FCO's Sustainable Development Global Opportunities Fund).
	More specifically on breeding of endangered species, we are also taking measures. For example, the Royal Botanic Gardens (RBG) Kew, a non-departmental public body sponsored by Defra, carries out much important work, in support of the Convention on Biological Diversity. All living collections held at RBG Kew have undergone a conservation audit so that their endangered state is known and this material is available for propagation and reintroduction. RBG Kew assists governments to identify areas of floristic diversity which should be protected in countries such as Bolivia, Brazil, Madagascar, Cameroon, Thailand and Brunei, and manages the Millennium Seed Bank Project which involves partnerships between 18 countries which seek to collect and conserve long-term, seed from 24,200 species. Seed of 96 per cent. of the seed bearing flora of the British Isles are also held in the Millennium Seed Bank. Seeds of rare and threatened species, such as the Lady's Slipper Orchid, are micro-propagated prior to reintroduction into the wild as part of the national Biodiversity Action Plan (BAP), managed by English Nature and other UK conservation agencies. Collections of rare UK BAP lower plants (bryophytes) are held as a cryo-preserved collection and work is currently under way to develop methods to recover and reintroduce these cryo-preserved collections.
	Also, in recognition that zoos can play a role in breeding endangered species for conservation purposes, British zoos are regulated through the Zoo Licensing Act 1981 to require them to participate in conservation measures including captive-breeding programmes for endangered species of animals.
	We also provide funds to a number of Darwin Initiative projects which are focused on breeding endangered species in order to contribute to their conservation in the wild. For example, the Initiative has provided three grants to the RSPB and the Institute of Zoology for work to address the catastrophic decline of Vulture species across Asia. This work has identified causes of these declines and set up a captive breeding programme to ensure survival of populations while these causes are being addressed.

Fly-tipping

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what volume of waste she estimates was illegally fly-tipped in the most recent year for which figures are available, broken down by (a) the nature of the waste and (b) whether it was fly-tipped in urban or rural areas;
	(2)  what estimated total volume of waste has been illegally fly-tipped in each year since 1992, broken down by the nature of waste.

Ben Bradshaw: Defra has worked with the Environment Agency to establish a national database on fly-tipping (Flycapture) which has been operational since April 2004. No national data were previously available on illegal waste disposal or fly-tipping.
	Flycapture is a summary database of fly-tipping incidents and does not record specific volumes. The following data are a summary of incidents reported to the Flycapture system from April 2004 to March 2005 broken down by waste type and location.
	
		
			  English WCAs EA Total—April 2004 to March 2005 
		
		
			 Highway 365,363 19,536 384,899 
			 Footpath bridleway 75,444 5,987 81,431 
			 Back alleyway 92,690 5,425 98,115 
			 Railway 790 47 837 
			 Council land 261,545 16,598 278,143 
			 Agricultural 3,633 391 4,024 
			 Private residential 16,837 1,723 18,560 
			 Commercial industrial 8,921 907 9,828 
			 Watercourse bank 2,164 197 2,361 
			 Other 37,682 3,362 41,044 
		
	
	
		
			  English WCAs EA Total 
		
		
			 Animal carcass 7,148 457 7,605 
			 Green 37,321 2,710 40,031 
			 Vehicle parts 13,811 1,123 14,934 
			 White goods 50,370 3,560 53,930 
			 Other electrical 16,685 1,233 17,918 
			 Tyres 21,463 1,631 23,094 
			 Asbestos 2,745 240 2,985 
			 Clinical 1,959 164 2,123 
			 Construction/demolition/ excavation 44,787 3,334 48,121 
			 Black bags—commercial 34,703 2,316 37,019 
			 Black bags—household 234,103 13,149 247,252 
			 Chemical drums of oil fuel 3,783 272 4,055 
			 Other household 244,371 17,336 261,707 
			 Other commercial 23,346 1,935 25,281 
			 Other 127,964 4,713 132,677 
		
	
	Note:
	The figures listed in the table are indicative figures from the first year of operation of the database. Data have become more consistent as users have submitted more complete returns. Defra will update its website with more detailed information on the first year's data shortly.

Game Rearing Farms

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many game rearing farms are operating in England.

Jim Knight: There are approximately 200 established game farms, who rear and sell in the UK. Approximately a further 200 or so gamekeepers rear birds mainly for their own estates but also sell some to other estates. Finally, a further 1,500 gamekeepers are involved in rearing game birds for release only on their own estates.
	I must emphasise that these figures are merely the industry's own best estimate for the UK as a whole. There are no actual statistics held.

GM Crops

Peter Law: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions she has had with the Welsh Assembly Government on the planting of GM crops in Wales.

Elliot Morley: Defra keeps in regular touch with the Welsh Assembly Government on GM crop issues. This covers any applications for approval to cultivate GM crops under the EU legislative process, and the development of policy on the co-existence of GM and non-GM crops. Co-existence is a devolved matter but Defra and the devolved administrations are sharing information and ideas on possible ways forward.

Hazardous Waste

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate she has made of (a) the tonnage and (b) types of hazardous waste that will need to be treated to comply with the hazardous waste acceptance criteria coming into force on 16 July.

Ben Bradshaw: The tonnage requiring treatment will depend on a number of factors, not least the amount arising. In 2003, some 4.8 million tonnes of special waste was consigned, and 47 per cent. was specifically consigned to treatment facilities (including recycling and reuse), 38 per cent. to landfill and 4 per cent. to incineration. Early indications suggest that arisings of hazardous waste for 2004 have declined further, though fully quality assured data will be available late in the summer.
	Estimates on available capacity of hazardous waste treatment infrastructure were prepared for the Hazardous Waste Forum and posted on the Forum's website: http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/waste/hazforum/statusreport.htm
	Government and the Environment Agency are working closely with hazardous waste producers in the Landfill Regulation Group to assess how far treatment exists for specific waste streams in order that they may meet the waste acceptance criteria. The waste streams being considered in detail include battery recycling slag, spent pot linings and plasterboard.

Hazardous Waste

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on the application of hazardous waste acceptance criteria coming into force on 16 July.

Ben Bradshaw: The Government have transposed the requirements of Council Decision 2003/33/EC establishing the criteria and procedures for the acceptance of waste at landfills in the Landfill (England and Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2004, SI 2004 No.1375. The Regulations will apply from 16 July 2005. A copy of the Regulations can be obtained from the Office of Public Sector Information at http://www.opsi.gov.uk/.

Hazardous Waste

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  which hazardous waste treatment facilities operating in England are able to treat hazardous waste to comply with the hazardous waste acceptance criteria; what their capacity is; and where they are located;
	(2)  what types of hazardous waste cannot be treated in the UK to comply with the hazardous waste acceptance criteria coming into force on 16 July; what the estimated quantities of such waste are; and when the technology required to treat this waste is expected to be operational.

Ben Bradshaw: Almost all hazardous wastes can be treated in order to comply with the landfill waste acceptance criteria. Those that cannot may generally be treated by other technologies (which may themselves produce residues suitable for landfill) such as high temperature incineration.
	Through its Landfill Regulation Group, the Environment Agency is working closely with industry and Government to identify problematic waste streams and their quantities to eliminate or mitigate any potential issues that could arise. This is being monitored by the Hazardous Waste Forum. Decisions on what if any additional technologies may be required are matters for commercial operators and subject to gaining the usual permissions for land use and environmental protection.
	The Environment Agency intends to supplement its Enforcement and Prosecution Policy with an enforcement position in respect of any hazardous waste that is not capable of meeting the Waste Acceptance Criteria on 16 July 2005 for which no alternative recovery or disposal routes are available.

Hazardous Waste

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many pollution prevention control permits the Environment Agency granted for hazardous waste treatment plants in (a) 2000, (b) 2001, (c) 2002, (d) 2003, (e) 2004 and (f) 2005 to date; to which plants; and what the capacity and location of each plant is.

Ben Bradshaw: The following table gives the number of permits for hazardous waste treatment plants issued by the Environment Agency under the Pollution and Prevention and Control (England and Wales) 2000 Regulations for the years 2000–05 to date.
	
		
			  Number of permits issued 
		
		
			 2005 to date 2 
			 2004 3 
			 2003 5 
			 2002 2 
			 2001 1 
			 2000 0 
		
	
	More detailed information, giving details of the capacity and location for each of these plants is given in the table.
	It should be noted that the capacity for four plants is given as >10 tonnes day. This is because this information is currently unavailable but I will write to the hon. Gentlemen when my officials have completed their investigations.
	
		
			 Operator name Installation name Date effective PPC permit address Capacity 
		
		
			 Advance Waste Management Ltd. Advance Waste Management 13 December 2001 Holbrooke Rise, Holbrooke Industrial Estate, Halfway, Sheffield, S20 3FG No throughput capacity limits. Six month storage limit of 200m(7) 
			 Reformation Disposal Services Ltd. Reformation Transfer Station 29 May 2002 Tollgate Road, Burscough Industrial Estate, Burscough, Ormskirk, L40 8LD Annual capacity—1,000 tonnes 
			 BP Exploration Operating Co. Ltd. BP Wytch Farm Oilfield 15 July 2002 Gathering Station, Thrashers Lane, Corffe Castle, Wareham, BH20 5JR In-house facility for BP only. No capacity limits in permit. 
			 Octel Waste Management Ltd. Octel Waste Treatment Centre 28 February 2003 Cheshire Waste Management Centre, Oil Sites Road, Ellesmere Port, South Wirral, CH65 4HF 206,000 tonnes per year 
			 Petroplus Tankstorage Milford Haven Ltd. Milford Haven Tankstorage 25 April 2003 Waterston Refinery, Milford Haven, SA73 1DR To longer treating waste. Applied to vary permit to remove the capability to treat produced water. 
			 Oil and Water Ltd. Shaftesbury Oil and Water 2 May 2003 20 Wincombe Business Park, Shaftsbury, SP7 9QJ Limited to oil related wastes: No annual throughput capacity. Approx max storage capacities: above ground tanks 844m(7).; Drums 53m(7); Reception sump 60m(7); skips 12m(7) 
			 Viridor Waste (Sheffield) Ltd. Salmon Pastures 1 October 2003 Salmon Pastures, Attercliffe Road, Sheffield, S4 7WT To throughput capacity limits or storage capacity limit. 
			 Alco Waste Management Ltd. Tanhouse Waste Transfer and Recycling Centre 12 December 2003 Tanhouse Ind. Estate, Cornubia Road, Lugsdale, Widness, WA8 OSB >10 tonnes haz waste/day 
			 Bale Environmental Ltd. Honiton Waste Oil Treatment Facility 23 April 2004 90 Durham Way, Heathpark Industrial Estate, Honiton, EX14 1SQ Waste oil >10tonnes/day 
			 Leicester City Council Leycroft Road Treatment Facility 24 May 2004 Leycroft Road, Beaumont Leys Liecester, LE4 1RT 120,000 litres max storage capacity (street cleaning waste, inc. oil contaminated) 
			 LIS (North Western) Limited LIS (North Western) Limited 14 October 2004 Unit 20, Haydock Lane, Haydock Industrial Estate, Haydock, WA11 9UQ >10 tonnes haz waste/day 
			 BCB Environmental Management Ltd. Tockwith Transfer Station 31 March 2005 Unit 87 Marston Moor Business Park, Tockwith, York, YO26 7QF Storage capacity of 50,000 tonnes/year 
			 OSS Group Ltd. OSS Group Ltd. Exeter 6 June 2005 Greendale Business Park, Greendale Barton, Woodbury Station, Exeter, EX5 1EN Waste oil >10tonnes/day

Hazardous Waste

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps (a) her Department and (b) the Environment Agency have taken to raise awareness amongst producers of hazardous waste of the hazardous waste acceptance criteria that will be in force from 16th July 2005.

Ben Bradshaw: The Government and the Environment Agency have undertaken the following actions, many of which were of joint collaboration:
	conducted seven rounds of public consultation on aspects of the Landfill Directive, two of which dealt specifically with waste acceptance criteria;
	set up the Hazardous Waste Forum in December 2002 to bring together key stakeholders to advise on the way forward on the management of hazardous waste;
	formed the Landfill Directive Implementation Group in March 2003. The Group provided stakeholder input into the process and negotiations in Europe that developed Council Decision 2003/33/EC establishing waste acceptance criteria and procedures;
	established the Landfill and Hazardous Waste Implementation Programme (LHIP) in April 2004 to drive the changes required to successfully implement landfill and hazardous waste legislation;
	set up a Communications Group for LHIP with strategic communication campaigns in place. This Group involves Defra, Environment Agency, DTI, Small Business Services, Envirowise, Environmental Services Association and Chartered Institution of Waste Management (CIWM);
	set up a specialist website (www.hazardouswaste.org.uk) to provide information about landfill and hazardous waste changes;
	produced leaflets and reports for distribution to waste producers to ensure they are aware of the changes;
	organised two WAG seminars. The first on 6 December 2004 to continue to promote understanding of the implications in implementing WAC and to assist industries in preparations for it. The second seminar on 15 April 2005 provided a further opportunity for Government, waste managers, waste producers, regulators and policy makers, to catch up on what progress had been made towards meeting WAC;
	Ministers, Government and Environment Agency officials have also spoken at many landfill and hazardous waste related events, some of which were organised by industry groups, such as ESA;
	organised a series of hazardous waste road shows aimed specifically at SMEs which took place in Manchester, Bristol, Birmingham and London during April and May 2005;
	produced an interpretative note (published in September 2004, available from www.defra.gov.uk) on the Landfill Regulations which cover many aspects of the Regulations, including on WAC, to help industry understand the Government's view on what the Regulations mean in practice;
	the Environment Agency has published a regulatory guidance note on WAC, available on the Agency's website at www.environment-agency.gov.uk;
	the Environment Agency set up a Landfill Regulation Group in April 2005 to develop a common understanding on the way forward for landfill and to act as a forward-looking forum concentrating on practical implementation of the Landfill Regulations and the impact on waste industry and the Environment Agency.

Hazardous Waste

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what estimate her Department has made of the tonnage of hazardous waste that has been fly-tipped since 16 July 2004;
	(2)  how many incidents of fly-tipping of hazardous waste the Environment Agency's Flycapture data collection system has recorded since 16 July 2004;
	(3)  what estimate she has made of the tonnage of hazardous waste fly-tipped on private land since 16 July 2004 which has not been recorded by the Environment Agency's Flycapture data system.

Ben Bradshaw: The national Flycapture database, established in April 2004, collates summary data of incidents of fly-tipping dealt with by waste collection authorities and the Environment Agency.
	Flycapture does not record data specifically on hazardous fly-tips as it is broken down by other waste types. The system does not record specific tonnages. No national data are collected on tonnages of illegally dumped hazardous waste on private land.
	Overall, the Environment Agency report that there has been no significant increase in fly-tipping of hazardous waste since July 2004, although there have been incidents of fly-tipping of asbestos in two regions, and these have been followed up as appropriate.
	The following table sets out the number of reported incidents dealt with by waste collection authorities and the Environment Agency in England for each month from July 2004 to April 2005, as recorded on Flycapture.
	
		
			 Month Asbestos Chemical drums/oil/fuel Total 
		
		
			 July 2004 256 256 512 
			 August 2004 242 473 715 
			 September 2004 283 267 550 
			 October 2004 299 311 610 
			 November 2004 275 388 663 
			 December 2004 193 298 491 
			 January 2005 265 336 601 
			 February 2005 327 674 1,001 
			 March 2005 259 438 697 
			 April 2005 276 385 661 
			 Total 2,675 3,826 6,501 
		
	
	Note:
	Hazardous waste is not a specified waste type within Flycapture so the figures provided indicate those waste streams which may include hazardous waste. It is also important to note that Flycapture is a relatively new system and data returns have been increasing as usage of the system improves.

National Enforcement Database

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many prosecutions resulted in (a) convictions and (b) custodial sentences in each year since 1 May 1997 for offences related to (i) water resources, (ii) flood defences, (iii) fisheries, (iv) navigation, (v) process industry regulation, (vi) radioactive substances, (vii) waste and (viii) water quality as recorded in the national enforcement database; and what the average fines were where custodial sentences were awarded (A) in total and (B) broken down by region.

Elliot Morley: The information requested is provided in the following tables. The figures commence in April of 1999 because that is when national enforcement statistics were first recorded on the national enforcement database.
	As regards what the average fines were where custodial sentences were awarded: fines and custodial sentences are not awarded against the same offence but are, in fact, mutually exclusive. It has therefore not been possible to provide any data in answer to this.
	
		
			  1999 (from 1 April) 2000 
			  Convictions Custodial Convictions Custodial 
		
		
			 Water resources 0 0 21 0 
			 Flood Defence 4 0 1 0 
			 Fisheries 0 0 29 0 
			 Navigation 3 0 6 0 
			 Process industry  regulation 6 0 12 0 
			 Radioactive substances 3 0 3 0 
			 Waste 321 5 434 5 
			 Water quality 220 0 229 0 
		
	
	
		
			  2001 2002 
			  Convictions Custodial Convictions Custodial 
		
		
			 Water resources 10 0 11 0 
			 Flood Defence 2 0 1 0 
			 Fisheries 22 0 50 0 
			 Navigation 3 0 14 0 
			 Process industry  regulation 52 0 3 0 
			 Radioactive substances 11 0 1 0 
			 Waste 493 11 517 5 
			 Water quality 237 0 408 0 
		
	
	
		
			  2003 2004 2005 (to 31 May) 
			  Convictions Custodial Convictions Custodial Convictions Custodial 
		
		
			 Water resources 6 0 19 0 8 0 
			 Flood Defence 5 0 9 0 3 0 
			 Fisheries 35 0 39 0 24 0 
			 Navigation 34 0 39 0 16 0 
			 Process industry regulation 5 0 14 0 6 0 
			 Radioactive substances 3 0 2 0 1 0 
			 Waste 429 7 450 7 209 1 
			 Water quality 175 0 187 1 91 0

National Fruit Collection Contract

Hugh Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 6 June 2005, Official Report, column 259W, on the National Fruit Collection, whether it is the Department's intention to advertise the contract on the open market once the two-year contract has expired on 31 March 2007.

Ben Bradshaw: holding answer 13 June 2005
	Defra's contract with the Brogdale Horticultural Trust for the maintenance of the National Fruit Collections (NFC) runs until 31 March 2007. Defra is currently undertaking a strategic review of the future of the National Fruit Collections which is expected to report later this year. In the meantime we have no plans to put the work to open competition.

Oil Spills

Janet Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will introduce a requirement for an annual inspection of domestic oil tanks to check the risk of oil spills.

Elliot Morley: I understand that a voluntary Tank Safety Scheme is under development by the Federation of Petroleum Suppliers and the Oil Firing Technical Association (Oftec), with support from the Environment Agency. This will combine the regular observations made by delivery drivers with the expertise of specialist registered technicians. Before considering the need for enforcement and statutory measures, this voluntary initiative needs to be given time to demonstrate that it can be effective.

Recycling

Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much funding (a) councils in England, (b) Guildford borough council and (c) Waverley borough council have received to support recycling in each year since 1997.

Ben Bradshaw: The main source of funding for local authorities' waste management services is the Environmental, Protective and Cultural Services (EPCS) block of annual Government grant. It is for the local authorities to decide what proportion of the block is invested in waste management services, including recycling.
	Funding is also being provided from a variety of other sources to help authorities improve recycling rates. The Waste Minimisation and Recycling (Challenge) Fund has made available funding totalling £275 million over the four years from 2002–03 to 2005–06 for specific projects to expand recycling operations.
	Through the Private Finance Initiative (PFI), credits worth £355 million have been made available over the same period as an extra source of funding, with a further £535 million available in 2006–07 and 2007–08.
	In January 2004 the Minister for Climate Change and the Environment announced that a further £20 million would be given to local authorities with responsibility for waste in England to reduce spending pressures in 2004–05.
	In December 2004 the Government announced a targeted local authority Waste Performance and Efficiency Grant totalling £260 million over the three years between 2005–6 and 2007–08. A full list of allocations to each authority in England in 2005–06 is available on the Defra website. Authorities will receive further allocations in 2006–07 and 2007–08.
	The amounts received by Guildford and Waverley borough councils from Defra funds to support recycling are shown in the following tables:
	
		A: Waverley borough council -- £
		
			  2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 
		
		
			 National Waste Minimisation and Recycling Fund 101,970 229,809 — — 
			 Grant to relieve spending pressures in the waste area — — 47,117 — 
			 Waste Performance and Efficiency Grant — — — 41,055 
		
	
	
		B: Guildford borough council -- £
		
			  2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 
		
		
			 National Waste Minimisation and Recycling Fund — 182,775 191,505 — 
			 Grant to relieve spending pressures in the waste area — — 30,780 — 
			 Waste Performance and Efficiency Grant — — — 46,648

Snaring

David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what action she is taking to promote (a) best practice and (b) observance of the law in relation to snaring.

Jim Knight: The Government support the legal use of snares and are committed to improving standards. An informal consultation on snares and traps and their use under UK legislation was carried out in 2003. One of the outcomes of the consultation was the convening of an independent snares working group. The aim of the working group is to agree good practice guidelines, produce a code of practice and advise DEFRA on any further work which needs to be undertaken to further improve the correct use of snares. The group is due to report by the autumn.
	The illegal use of snares is irresponsible and can have a serious impact on the welfare of individual animals. If anyone suspects that snares are being used illegally they should report the matter to the police.

SSSIs

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in what condition each site of special scientific interest (SSSI) has been in each year since 1997; and what the total land areas of SSSIs was in each category (a) in England and (b) broken down by (i) region and (ii) location in each year.

Jim Knight: Under the Joint Nature Conservation Committee's Common Standards for Monitoring, SSSI condition is assessed only on a six year cycle. In England, the first cycle, completed in March 2003, showed 56.9 per cent. in favourable or recovering condition, from a total area of 1,051,498 hectares. Full results for December 2003 were published by English Nature in The Condition of Sites of Special Scientific Interest in England in 2003".
	According to the latest assessment carried out on each unit of SSSI land by 31 March 2004, 62.8 per cent. from a total of 1,076,704 hectares of SSSI land was in favourable or recovering condition at that time. The equivalent figure for 31 March 2005 was 67.4 per cent. from a total area of 1,072,538 hectares.
	Information on the current condition of each SSSI in England and a summary of SSSI condition in each Government region is available on the English Nature website at www.English-Nature.org.uk.

Thames Barrier

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will list the occasions on which the Thames Barrier has been closed in each year since its inception; and what estimate she has made of the number of occasions when it will be closed in (a) 2010, (b) 2020, (c) 2050 and (d) 2100.

Elliot Morley: The Thames Barrier is closed to protect London from high water levels in the River Thames. These high water levels result from tidal surge conditions in combination with high freshwater flows following rainfall over the Thames catchment. The Barrier closures may be characterised as predominantly tidal-influenced (T) or predominantly rainfall/fluvial-influenced (F). Since inception, the Thames Barrier has been closed to prevent flooding during the winter flood season (generally October to April) on 92 occasions as follows:
	
		
			  Tidal Fluvial Total 
		
		
			 1982–83 1 0 1 
			 1983–84 0 0 0 
			 1984–85 0 0 0 
			 1985–86 0 1 1 
			 1986–87 1 0 1 
			 1987–88 0 0 0 
			 1988–89 1 0 1 
			 1989–90 1 3 4 
			 1990–91 1 0 1 
			 1991–92 1 0 1 
			 1992–93 4 0 4 
			 1993–94 3 4 7 
			 1999–95 2 2 4 
			 1995–96 4 0 4 
			 1996–97 1 0 1 
			 1997–98 1 0 1 
			 1998–99 2 0 2 
			 1999–00 3 3 6 
			 2000–01 16 8 24 
			 2001–02 3 1 4 
			 2002–03 8 12 20 
			 2003–04 1 0 1 
			 2004–05 3 0 3 
			 2005–06 (to date) 1 0 1 
		
	
	Forecasting the frequency of future closures of the Thames Barrier depends on two principal factors:
	(a) The impacts of climate change on sea and river levels based on the climate change scenarios currently available; and
	(b) The extent to which these levels may be reduced by other flood risk management measures used within the Thames Estuary in conjunction with operation of the Thames Barrier.
	Depending on the balance of factors described above, The Environment Agency's early studies indicate that the estimated frequency of closures will be as follows.
	2010: 10—20 closures per year
	2020: 20—35 closures per year
	2050: 6*—75 closures per year
	2100: 30*—325 closures per year
	The lower figure for each year indicates the best predicted outcome based on lowest climate change scenario impacts and maximum use of flood management mitigation measures implemented from 2030 (shown by *). The higher figure for each year indicates the worst potential outcome based on maximum climate change predicted impacts with no additional flood management mitigation measures implemented from 2030.
	The Environment Agency is currently planning for the future of flood risk management within the Thames Estuary. For this purpose, it has established a project called Thames Estuary 2100 based at the Thames Barrier. The purpose of the project is to produce a flood risk management plan for the tidal part of the Thames Estuary covering the next 100 years.

Trees

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the percentage tree cover in each EU member state was (a) on the latest date for which figures are available, (b) 10 years ago and (c) 20 years ago.

Jim Knight: Based on information collected by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation forest as a percentage of land area is given in the table as follows.
	
		
			 Country 2000(5) 1990(5) 1980(6) 
		
		
			 Austria 47 46 45 
			 Belgium/Luxembourg 22 23 23 
			 Denmark 11 10 11 
			 Finland 72 72 76 
			 France 28 27 28 
			 Germany 31 31 29 
			 Greece 28 26 45 
			 Ireland 10 7 6 
			 Italy 34 33 27 
			 Netherlands 11 11 10 
			 Portugal 40 34 35 
			 Spain 29 27 25 
			 Sweden 66 66 68 
			 United Kingdom 12 11 9 
		
	
	(5)FAO Global Forest Resources Assessment 2000. Definitions of forest can vary between countries and over time.
	(6)FAO The Forest Resources of the ECE Region, published 1985. The years covered vary between countries, although most are around 1980. Definitions of forest can vary between countries.
	The next international compilation will be the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation's Forest Resource Assessment 2005, which is expected to be published in the autumn.

Trees

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent steps (a) have been taken and (b) are planned to improve tree health.

Jim Knight: The need to maintain, and improve where necessary, the health and vitality of trees is integral to the Government's approach to sustainable forest management. We have set this out in the UK Forestry Standard and its supporting literature, which contain many specific measures for protecting woodland and improving tree health. All woodland management by the Forestry Commission is consistent with this standard and we expect private woodland owners that receive grant aid from the Forestry Commission to also meet the standard. The Government have encouraged the development of the voluntary UK Woodland Assurance Standard that provides an independent verification of compliance with good practice and measures to ensure the continuing good health of woodland. We shall continue to ensure compliance with the UK Forest Standard in those woods managed by the Forestry Commission and encourage it in the private sector.
	We will also continue to improve, through research, our knowledge of factors affecting tree health and we shall maintain a vigilant guard against the establishment of non-native pests and diseases. For example, there is a determined effort, led by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the Forestry Commission, to contain and eradicate the diseases of trees and shrubs caused by the pathogens Phytophthora ramorum and Phytophthora kernoviae.

Trees

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the total (a) area and (b) production in cubic metres of (i)broadleaf and (ii) coniferous woodland in England has been in each year since 1980, broken down by region.

Jim Knight: A national woodland survey is carried out by the Forestry Commission at intervals of between 15 and 20 years. Comparative areas of woodland 1 in 1980 and 1998 were published in the latest National Inventory of Woodland and Trees, Regional Inventory reports. The figures are given in the table as follows.
	
		
			  1980(8) thousand hectares 1998(9) thousand hectares 
			 Region Broadleaves Conifers Broadleaves Conifers 
		
		
			 North-East 16.2 73.3 24.5 69.2 
			 North-West 33.0 39.4 46.7 39.8 
			 Yorkshire and the  Humber 39.0 37.4 46.1 35.4 
			 East Midlands 37.8 21.6 52.9 17.9 
			 West Midlands 44.1 28.3 63.1 25.7 
			 East of England 59.4 40.7 90.2 37.5 
			 London 5.4 0.3 5.5 0.2 
			 South East 138.2 59.1 173.6 52.4 
			 South West 95.7 63.8 137.4 60.8 
			 Total England 468.8 363.9 640.0 338.9 
		
	
	(7)Excluding open space, coppice and felled areas awaiting replanting.
	(8)1980 Census of Woodland
	(9)National Inventory of Woodland and Trees—Regional Inventory Reports. Reference dates varied by region 1995 to 1999.
	Notes:
	1.Differences in sampling methodology between 1980 and 1998 may account for some of the differences.
	2.In the 1980 Census the area assigned to broadleaves and conifers included any associated open space such as roads and rides. In the 1998 Inventory open spaces are separately identified and to obtain meaningful comparison between the two datasets the 1980 Census data has been reduced by the percentage of open space identified in the 1998 Inventory (Nationally 6.5 per cent.).
	Timber production is not recorded by region and the estimate for total England production is given in the table as follows.
	
		
			  Removals in million cubic metres overbark standing(10) 
			  Hardwoods (from broadleafed trees) Softwood (from conifer trees) 
		
		
			 1980 1.2 1.3 
			 1981 1.2 1.3 
			 1982 1.0 1.4 
			 1983 0.8 1.4 
			 1984 0.8 1.5 
			 1985 0.9 1.5 
			 1986 0.9 1.7 
			 1987 0.8 1.9 
			 1988 1.1 2.3 
			 1989 1.2 2.5 
			 1990 1.1 2.5 
			 1991 1.1 2.5 
			 1992 0.8 2.6 
			 1993 0.7 2.3 
			 1994 0.8 2.6 
			 1995 0.9 2.5 
			 1996 0.8 2.4 
			 1997 0.8 2.2 
			 1998 0.7 2.1 
			 1999 0.7 2.2 
			 2000 0.6 2.1 
			 2001 0.6 2.0 
			 2002 0.6 1.8 
			 2003 0.5 2.1 
			 2004(11) 0.5 2.4 
		
	
	1 Based on figures published in Forestry Facts and Figures for 1980–94, adjusted to consistent definition. Later figures for private sector removals estimated from a GB survey for 2000–04 and interpolated.
	2 Figures for 2004 are currently provisional.

Waste Education

Janet Dean: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans she has to allocate a proportion of landfill tax revenue to waste education based work in schools.

Ben Bradshaw: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given to the hon. Member for Stoke-on-Trent North (Joan Walley) on 2 February 2005, Official Report, column 896W.

Water/Sewerage Services

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the average monthly cost to consumers is of (a) water services and (b) sewerage services in each water supply area in 2004–05 (i) in total and (ii) broken down by those who were (A) metered and (B) unmetered.

Elliot Morley: The average monthly cost to households of water and sewerage services is set out in the following tables, broken down by company area and by measured and unmeasured supply.
	
		2004–05
		
			 Water and sewerage companies Unmeasured water Measured water Total water Unmeasured sewerage Measured sewerage Total sewerage 
		
		
			 Anglian 11.65 8.42 9.91 16.38 11.65 13.84 
			 Dwr Cymru 11.09 6.87 10.28 15.11 7.86 13.61 
			 North West 11.35 9.88 11.09 11.84 10.42 11.6 
			 Northumbrian (incl. Essex and Suffolk) 9.74 8.01 9.38 11.1 9.41 10.92 
			 Northumbrian 8.62 7.02 8.44 0 0 0 
			 Essex and Suffolk 12.02 8.49 10.79 0 0 0 
			 Severn Trent 10.1 8.35 9.68 8.94 8.26 8.79 
			 SouthWest 12.5] 8.17 10.47 23.8 14.13 19.13 
			 Southern 7.82 7.31 7.68 14.62 11.69 13.85 
			 Thames 9.57 8.35 9.32 8.06 7.93 8.04 
			 Wessex 11.4 8.53 10.46 13.44 10.04 12.5 
			 Yorkshire (incl. York) 10.16 8.58 9.73 11.12 9.05 10.57 
		
	
	
		
			 Water only companies Unmeasured water Measured water Total water 
		
		
			 Bournemouth and  W. Hampshire 9.42 8 8.9 
			 Bristol 9.37 8.06 9.07 
			 Cambridge 8.39 8.83 7.55 
			 Dee Valley 10.02 8.58 8.86 
			 Folkestone and Dover 13.44 9.02 11.64 
			 Mid Kent 11.57 9.15 10.77 
			 Portsmouth 6.39 8.44 6.39 
			 South East 11.29 9.21 10.69 
			 South Staffs 7.46 7.38 7.45 
			 Sutton and East Surrey 10.77 8.73 10.38 
			 Tendring Hundred 10.81 11.06 13.28 
			 Three Valleys 10.47 8.29 9.96 
		
	
	
		
			 Water and sewerage companies Total unmeasured Total measured Total all households 
		
		
			 Anglian 28.02 20.07 23.75 
			 Dwr Cymru 26.21 14.73 23.89 
			 North West 23.19 20.3 22.69 
			 Northumbrian (incl.  Essex and Suffolk) 20.84 17.42 20.3 
			 Northumbrian 0 0 0 
			 Essex and Suffolk 0 0 0 
			 Severn Trent 19.04 16.62 18.46 
			 SouthWest 36.3 22.3 29.6 
			 Southern 22.44 19 21.52 
			 Thames 17.63 16.28 17.36 
			 Wessex 24.84 18.57 22.97 
			 Yorkshire (incl. York) 21.28 17.63 20.3

Water/Sewerage Services

Edward Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the volume of sewage discharges from each sewage treatment works in South West London was in each of the last 10 years.

Elliot Morley: Information for most of the requested years is either incomplete, or not readily available without disproportionate effort in the available time. Readily available information is presented in the following table, where sewage works in South West London are taken to be those listed. Information for 2002 is not included as it is incomplete.
	
		Treated sewage effluent from South West London sewage treatment works for years indicated in millions m(12)
		
			 Sewage works 2001 2003 2004(10) 
		
		
			 Mogden 220 225 197 
			 Esher 15.8 13.5 13.4 
			 Hogsmill A 33.5 26.9 27.6 
			 Hogsmill B 6.9 7 6.4 
			 Total(11) 276 272 244 
		
	
	(10)Includes estimated data.
	(11)Rounded.

Water/Sewerage Services

Edward Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what guidance her Department has given to water companies and sewage service providers to ensure that their sewage treatment works meet the criteria of the EU 1991 Urban Waste and Water Treatment Directive.

Elliot Morley: In England the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive is transposed by the Urban Waste Water Treatment (England and Wales) Regulations 1994.
	Guidance to the regulations, titled Urban Waste Water Treatment (England and Wales) Regulations 1994, Working Document for Dischargers and Regulators, A Guidance Note" was issued to sewerage undertakers and the Environment Agency in 1997.

Water/Sewerage Services

Edward Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what penalties there are for (a) water companies and (b) sewage service providers who fail to meet the EU 1991 Urban Waste and Water Treatment Directive.

Elliot Morley: Regulation 6(2) of the Urban Waste Water Treatment (England and Wales) Regulations 1994, places a duty on the Environment Agency to ensure, through its discharge consenting powers under schedule 10 of the Water Resources Act 1991, as amended by the Environment Act 1995, that treatment standards set in the regulations are met. Where the Environment Agency considers sewerage undertakers are in breach of their consents it can undertake legal proceedings. Courts finding in favour of the Environment Agency can then levy fines.
	Sewerage undertakers also have a duty under section94 of the Water Industry Act 1991 to provide sewage collecting systems, which is supplemented by Regulation 4 of the above-mentioned regulations. The Water Act 2003 also gives Ofwat, the Secretary of State and the National Assembly for Wales powers to impose financial penalties in certain circumstances. The approach is included in the 'Statement of policy with respect to financial penalties' which is on Ofwat's website, www.ofwat.gov.uk

Water/Sewerage Services

Edward Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate she has made of the number of sewage service providers who are failing to meet the EU 1991 Urban Waste and Water Treatment Directive in (a) London and (b) England; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: It is the role of the Environment Agency to monitor and enforce the requirements of environmental legislation.
	Each year the Environment Agency advises Ofwat of water companies' compliance with Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive requirements contained in discharge consents. Ofwat publishes summary information in its Levels of Service for the water industry in England and Wales" annual reports available on its website.

Water/Sewerage Services

John Whittingdale: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what measures she is taking to ensure that there are adequate numbers of disposal points at sewage treatment works for delivered waste from domestic cess pools.

Elliot Morley: It is the responsibility of the users of cess pools and septic tanks to arrange the lawful disposal of waste from them. Services for the collection, transport and treatment of such waste are open to competition, and are offered by sewerage companies and by other firms. Neither Ministers nor Ofwat have intervened to require companies to provide such services.

TREASURY

Bankruptcy and Repossession

Vincent Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many (a) individuals have entered into bankruptcy and (b) properties have been repossessed in each quarter since 1990; and if he will make a statement.

John Healey: The requested data is in the following tables. Data on individual bankruptcies is published by the Department for Trade and Industry, while data on repossessions is published by the Council of Mortgage Lenders.
	Repossession figures are only available on a biannual rather than on a quarterly basis. Property repossessions are close to record lows as interest rates remain around their lowest levels for almost half a century. The Treasury has worked closely with the Department for Trade and Industry and the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister on the recent consumer credit bill, which sets out policy on tackling over-indebtedness, financial exclusion, unfair lending practices and loan sharks; and on the quality and quantity of information available to consumers looking for credit.
	
		Bankruptcy orders
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 1990 Q1 2,514 
			 1990 Q2 2,804 
			 1990 Q3 3,018 
			 1990 Q4 3,722 
			 1991 Q1 4,835 
			 1991 Q2 5,337 
			 1991 Q3 5,523 
			 1991 Q4 6,937 
			 1992 Q1 8,389 
			 1992 Q2 7,791 
			 1992 Q3 7,506 
			 1992 Q4 8,420 
			 1993 Q1 9,435 
			 1993 Q2 7,394 
			 1993 Q3 7,172 
			 1993 Q4 7,015 
			 1994 Q1 7,415 
			 1994 Q2 6,588 
			 1994 Q3 6,140 
			 1994 Q4 5,491 
			 1995 Q1 5,609 
			 1995 Q2 5,838 
			 1995 Q3 5,279 
			 1995 Q4 5,207 
			 1996 Q1 5,862 
			 1996 Q2 5,443 
			 1996 Q3 5,446 
			 1996 Q4 5,052 
			 1997 Q1 5,117 
			 1997 Q2 5,278 
			 1997 Q3 4,958 
			 1997 Q4 4,539 
			 1998 Q1 4,938 
			 1998 Q2 4,755 
			 1998 Q3 5,113 
			 1998 Q4 4,841 
			 1999 Q1 5,799 
			 1999 Q2 5,527 
			 1999 Q3 5,365 
			 1999 Q4 4,920 
			 2000 Q1 5,667 
			 2000 Q2 5,414 
			 2000 Q3 5,451 
			 2000 Q4 5,018 
			 2001 Q1 6,078 
			 2001 Q2 6,115 
			 2001 Q3 5,817 
			 2001 Q4 5,467 
			 2002 Q1 6,027 
			 2002 Q2 6,269 
			 2002 Q3 6,249 
			 2002 Q4 5,747 
			 2003 Q1 6,912 
			 2003 Q2 6,949 
			 2003 Q3 7,221 
			 2003 Q4 6,940 
			 2004 Q1 8,524 
			 2004 Q2 9,060 
			 2004 Q3 9,315 
			 2004 Q4 8,999 
			 2005 Q1 10,188 
		
	
	
		Properties in possession at end period
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 1990 H2 36,210 
			 1991 H1 53,460 
			 1991 H2 67,370 
			 1992 H1 68,490 
			 1992 H2 64,970 
			 1993 H1 54,330 
			 1993 H2 39,910 
			 1994 H1 33,240 
			 1994 H2 29,360 
			 1995 H1 29,760 
			 1995 H2 27,220 
			 1996 H1 23,970 
			 1996 H2 16,190 
			 1997 H1 14,100 
			 1997 H2 13,910 
			 1998 H1 15,200 
			 1998 H2 13,930 
			 1999 H1 13,100 
			 1999 H2 10,760 
			 2000 H1 9,150 
			 2000 H2 7,930 
			 2001 H1 7,270 
			 2001 H2 5,590 
			 2002 H1 4,130 
			 2002 H2 2,820 
			 2003 H1 2,490 
			 2003 H2 2,010 
			 2004 H1 1,880 
			 2004 H2 2,370

Civil Servants

Vincent Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what value for money procurement savings were identified and what reduction in civil service posts occurred in his Department in 2004–05.

John Healey: HM Revenue and Customs' figure for value for money procurement savings for 2004–05 is due to be audited and submitted to the Office of Government Commerce at the end of July. During 2004–05, HMRC delivered a total net full time equivalent reduction of 1,045 posts.
	The Treasury's target for efficiency savings over the Spending Review 2004 period includes the delivery of £1 million of efficiencies by 2007–08 through improvements to the Treasury's procurement strategy. The plans to achieve this target include securing economies of scale through sharing of services with HMRC and maximising income opportunities through sub-letting of the building. Quantified procurement savings are currently being identified.
	During 2004–05 the Treasury has secured efficiencies in working practices and processes which have enabled it to make good early progress on its full time equivalent post reduction target. By April 2005 efficiencies had been secured leading to a reduction in 100 full time equivalent posts. Both the HMRC and Treasury reductions in posts are adjusted for the 150 tax policy posts that transferred from HMRC to the Treasury during 2004–05.

Council Tax

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the revenue from council tax in England has been in each year since 1997–98.

Phil Woolas: I have been asked to reply.
	Accrued council tax income (net collectable debit) in England in the years 1997–98 to 2004–05 are available in Local Government Financial Statistics England No 15 2004. Outturn figures for 2004–05 will be published in an Office of the Deputy Prime Minister statistical release on 23 June.

False National Insurance Records

John Hemming: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many false national insurance records have been found in each year since 2000.

Dawn Primarolo: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 6 June 2005, Official Report, column 294W.

Hepatitis C (Burton)

Janet Dean: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many deaths were caused by hepatitis C infection in Burton constituency in (a) 2003 and (b) 2004.

John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	Letter from Colin Mowl to Mrs. Janet Dean, dated 16 June 2005
	The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking how many deaths were caused by hepatitis C infection in Burton Constituency in (a) 2003 and (b)2004. I am replying in his absence. (4427)
	Information on cause of death is available from death certificates. This information relates to where hepatitis C was either the underlying cause of death (i.e. the disease or condition that initiates the train of morbid events leading directly to death) or was mentioned on the death certificate as contributing to this sequence of events leading to death.
	Information is not recorded at death if the certifying doctor did not know about the existence of a hepatitis C infection (which may have been contracted many years earlier), or where hepatitis C infection was not considered to be one of the factors contributing to the death.
	There were no deaths of usual residents of Burton constituency registered in 2003 or 2004 where hepatitis C was the underlying cause of death. There was one death registered in 2003 where hepatitis C was mentioned on the death certificate.1
	1 Deaths were selected from the original causes of death recorded in the register. The following International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10) codes were used for selection:
	ICD-10 B17.1—Acute hepatitis C
	ICD-10B18.2—Chronic viral hepatitis C

House Prices

Vincent Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the effect on house prices of the Government's shared equity proposals; and if he will make a statement.

John Healey: This is a targeted measure that is expected to help up to 110,000 homebuyers over the next five years. While this is a substantial boost for first time buyers it needs to be considered in the context of the measures the Government is taking to increase housing supply, with 200,000 new homes expected to be built in this year alone and similar levels of home building in future years, and which are on top of a housing stock of some 26 million homes. With supply increasing far faster than the provision of these shared equity schemes, and this being on top of a total housing stock that dwarfs the number of homes that will be bought through shared equity schemes, we believe the effect on house prices in general will not be significant.
	What really matters for the majority of homebuyers in terms of house prices is low and stable interest rates which this Government's monetary policy framework—in particular the independence of the Monetary Policy Committee—is delivering, alongside increasing housing supply, helped by a series of supply side reforms, including on planning.

Income Tax

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people he estimates did not pay income tax in 2004–05.

Dawn Primarolo: The number of people who did not pay income tax in 2004–05 can be estimated from the difference between the current projections of the UK's population and the projections of the number of income taxpayers. Information on the estimated number of income taxpayers in 2004–05 is available in table 2.1 'Number of individual income taxpayers' on the HM Revenue and Customs internet website at http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/income_tax/table2–1.pdf
	Population projections are prepared by the Government Actuary's Department and the UK projected population estimates can be found on the following link http://www.gad.gov.uk/Population/2003/uk/wuk03singyear.xls

Internet Use

Vincent Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will set out the Department's policy on the private use by staff of the internet and how it is monitored.

John Healey: Treasury staff are allowed to make reasonable private use of the internet for browsing and e-mail, but any deliberate access to, or sending of, inappropriate material is treated as a serious disciplinary offence.
	Filtering software is used on the Department's firewalls to block access to most websites that contain inappropriate material, and to prevent similar material from entering the Treasury via e-mail. All internet activity, both for web browsing and e-mail is logged automatically on Treasury IT systems and can therefore be examined if any misuse is suspected.

Primary School Children (Tamworth)

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many primary school age children there are expected to be in Tamworth in each of the next five academic years.

John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	Letter from Colin Mowl to Mr. Brian Jenkins, dated 16 June 2005
	The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question concerning the number of primary school age children there are predicted to be in Tamworth for the next five academic years. I am replying in his absence. (4940)
	Official 2003-based Subnational Population Projections for England were published by the Office for National Statistics in November 2004. The attached table shows the projected mid-year population of 5 to 11-year-olds for Tamworth taken from these projections.
	
		Tamworth projected population of primary(12)school age children
		
			  Thousand 
		
		
			 2005 6.9 
			 2006 6.8 
			 2007 6.7 
			 2008 6.6 
			 2009 6.4 
			 2010 6.3 
		
	
	(12)Primary school age defined as 5 to 11-year-olds
	Source:
	ONS 2003-based Subnational population projections http://www.statistics.gov.uk/STATBASE/Product.asp?vlnk=997

Private Finance Initiative

Vincent Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what studies his Department has (a) undertaken, (b) commissioned and (c) reviewed on the efficiency of private finance initiative; and if he will make a statement.

John Healey: HM Treasury assumed responsibility for PFI policy in April 2003. In July 2003 the Treasury published the document PFI: Meeting the Investment Challenge" (available on the HM Treasury website). This distilled the findings of a number of studies into PFI that were either undertaken or reviewed by HM Treasury. References for these studies are included within the document. HM Treasury have a framework agreement in place with Partnerships UK under which it commissions work on a variety of PFI subjects on an ad hoc basis. The Treasury also takes account of the findings from NAO and PAC reports on PFI as they are published.

Revenue and Customs

Hugo Swire: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether HM Revenue and Customs has an obligation properly to check full and accurate information submitted by a taxpayer on or before 30 September before calculating the taxpayer's liability.

Dawn Primarolo: It is the responsibility of the person submitting the Self Assessment Return to ensure that it is, to the best of their knowledge, correct and complete. Obvious errors and mistakes are corrected. However there is no obligation on HM Revenue and Customs to check the information contained in any Self Assessment return before calculating the liability.

Revenue and Customs

Hugo Swire: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether HM Revenue and Customs, in calculating a taxpayer's liability when it receives a tax return by 30 September, is only able to check that taxpayer's return for obvious mistakes by opening an enquiry under the Taxes Acts.

Dawn Primarolo: The legislation governing the operation of self-assessment allows HM Revenue and Customs to correct any obvious errors or mistakes on a self-assessment tax return for a period of up to nine months after the date of receipt without the need to open an enquiry.

Tax Benefit Manual

Vincent Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make available the latest Tax Benefit Manual and a copy of the summary minutes from recent Treasury Management Board meetings.

John Healey: The 2004–05 edition of the Tax Benefit Reference Manual is available in the House of Commons Library.
	The minutes of Treasury Board meetings are not routinely disclosed as to do so would harm the frankness and candour of internal discussion.

Tax Credit (Overpayments)

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many non-pensioner families in (a) the London borough of Haringey and (b) Hornsey and Wood Green constituency were recipients of tax credits in each of the last three years; how many have been identified as having received overpayments; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: I refer the hon. Member to my reply on 7 June 2005, Official Report, column 468W to the hon. Member for Birmingham, Selly Oak (Mrs. Jones).

Tax Credit (Overpayments)

James Clappison: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many recipients of tax credits are being pursued for repayments as a result of overpayment of tax credits in (a) Hertsmere and (b) Hertfordshire.

Dawn Primarolo: HMRC has published statistics that show estimates of the number of 2003–04 awards to families that were overpaid in each region, local authority and constituency at 5 April 2004, after finalisation. The estimates are based on samples and are subject to significant sampling uncertainty. The publication can be found on the HMRC website at: http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/personal-tax-credits/cwtc-pyts_geog0304.pdf
	Details of how overpayments are recovered are provided in the Department's Code of Practice 26 What happens if we have paid you too much tax credit."

Winter Fuel Allowance

Iris Robinson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will increase the amount of the pensioners' fuel allowance in line with changes in oil prices.

Stephen Timms: I have been asked to reply.
	We have no such plans. The payment has risen from £20 in winter 1997–98 to £200 from winter 2000–01. It is a significant contribution towards fuel costs but is not intended to cover the full cost of fuel bills.

PRIME MINISTER

Defence Systems and Equipment

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Prime Minister if he will be attending the Defence Systems and Equipment International Exhibition in September.

Tony Blair: No.

Nuclear Inventories (Missing Material)

Harry Cohen: To ask the Prime Minister what assessment he has made of the amounts of material missing from nuclear inventories which could be used in construction of a weapon in (a) the UK, (b) other NATO member states, (c) other countries with nuclear weapons and (d) other states with nuclear power; and if he will make a statement.

Malcolm Wicks: I have been asked to reply.
	The Office for Civil Nuclear Security (OCNS), which regulates the security of nuclear material held by the UK civil nuclear industry, has recorded no theft of nuclear material from the industry. MOD is responsible for the security of the UK's inventory of non-civil nuclear material and there is no recorded theft of such material. Internationally, the security measures to prevent, and provide early warning of, the possible theft of nuclear material (e.g. by 'non-state actors') are a matter for the individual states concerned.
	In addition, nuclear safeguards provide assurance that states (or nuclear facility operators on their behalf) do not divert nuclear material from declared peaceful uses. Euratom treaty safeguards are applied to all civil nuclear material in the UK and the European Commission's most recent report on its application of these safeguards concluded there were no indications that civil nuclear material in the EU (including UK and EU members of NATO) had been diverted from its declared uses http://europa.eu.int/comm/energy/nuclear/legislation/doc/2005_01_07_COM_2004_861_en.pdf.
	So far as the application of international safeguards to inventories of nuclear material outside the UK are concerned, in addition to the Euratom treaty safeguards conclusions mentioned above, the definitive source is the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), whose safeguards conclusions are published at the IAEA website http://www.iaea.org/OurWork/SV/Safeguards/es2003.html. However, such IAEA safeguards do not apply to all nuclear material in nuclear-weapon states nor to all material in states which are not party to the treaty on the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons (the NPT).

Prime Minister

Graham Allen: To ask the Prime Minister what the procedure is for the selection of a new Prime Minister in the event of an incumbent retiring before a General Election; and if he will review the procedure.

Tony Blair: Her Majesty the Queen appoints the Prime Minister, but the procedure for selecting a new Party Leader would be a matter for the political party concerned.

EDUCATION AND SKILLS

School Meals

Jeff Ennis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what steps she is taking to assist in improving school meals by providing additional training for catering staff.

Jacqui Smith: Together with the Food Standards Agency and People 1st, we have developed a Vocationally Related Qualification (VRQ) at Level 1 in Healthier Catering, which will give school cooks and caterers the knowledge and skills to deliver a healthier meals service. We are also working with our external partners to review and build on other qualifications that are currently available to ensure we have a ladder of qualifications to meet the skills needs of all catering staff.

School Meals

Philip Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will receive a deputation of school children from Millbrook Junior School in Kettering to discuss provision of healthier food in schools.

Maria Eagle: I would be happy to meet a deputation of children from Millbrook Junior School.

School Meals

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what discussions she has had on improving the skills of those who work in school kitchens; and whether she intends to issue guidance to local authorities on this matter.

Jacqui Smith: My officials have had discussions with a wide range of bodies including the People 1st (the Sector Skills Council for the hospitality, leisure, travel and tourism industries), the Food Standards Agency (FSA), the Teacher Training Agency, the Learning and Skills Council and the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority. We have no current plans to issue guidance to local authorities but, as my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for children and families in her response to an adjournment debate on 23 May 2005, Official Report, column 535, said, we strongly encourage schools and LEAs to consider releasing support staff, as many already do, to attend training and development, especially where it is job related.

School Meals

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills pursuant to her answer of 7 June 2005, Official Report, column 477W, on school meals, whether she plans to develop a level 2 qualification.

Jacqui Smith: There are currently a range of catering qualifications available at levels 2 and 3. We are currently working with People 1st, the Food Standards Agency, the Teacher Training Agency, the LSC and the QCA to review and build on the qualifications that are available to ensure we have a ladder of qualifications, which includes information on nutritional standards where appropriate, and will meet the skills needs of all catering staff.

School Meals

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills pursuant to her answer of 7 June 2005, Official Report, column 477W, on school meals, 
	(1)  what procedures are in place to monitor whether she needs to use her statutory powers to issue a directive to a school that is failing to meet current nutritional standards;
	(2)  how many directions she has issued to schools that have failed to meet the current nutritional standard, in each year since the current nutritional standards came into force.

Jacqui Smith: Local authorities or, where the budget for school lunches is delegated to them, school governing bodies have a duty to ensure that school lunch nutritional standards are being met. We are developing monitoring arrangements in support of our drive to improve school meals.
	Support for healthy eating will be one aspect of children's services joint area reviews at local authority level.
	Ofsted will, from September, inspect and report on schools' contribution to the 'being healthy' aspect of pupil well-being. School meals will be considered as part of this.
	A separate sample survey linked to the proposed new standards is planned for the autumn.

School Meals

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills pursuant to the answer of 7 June 2005, Official Report, column 478W, on school meals, what the annual budget is of (a) the School Food Trust and (b) the School Meals Review Panel.

Jacqui Smith: As I have previously announced, the School Food Trust will receive an annual budget of £5 million over the next three years. The School Meals Review Panel is an advisory group and does not have a fixed budget, although members of the panel are reimbursed for their expenditure on travel and subsistence when attending meetings.

School Meals

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills pursuant to the answer of 7 June 2005, Official Report, column 477W, on school meals, when the school meals review panel will begin the examination of other food and drink sold on school premises.

Jacqui Smith: The top priority for the school meals review panel is to consider how to tighten nutritional standards that apply to school lunches as, for many children, this is often the main meal of the day.
	However, the panel will also consider whether and how these standards might be applied to other aspects of food and drink in schools.

Private Schools (Charitable Status)

Colin Challen: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will take steps to remove the charitable status of private schools.

Jacqui Smith: My right hon. Friend the Home Secretary is responsible for the law on charitable status. Under the Charities Bill an organisation qualifies for charitable status only if it has a charitable purpose—such as advancement of education—and is for the public benefit. The Charity Commission, the independent regulator, will review the public benefit credentials of fee-charging charities, including independent schools. Any that are not for the public benefit face loss of charitable status.

Sure Start

Peter Soulsby: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many children are participating in the Sure Start programme.

Beverley Hughes: During March 2005, nationally across all Sure Start local programmes, 79,356 children were seen. Our expectations have been that programmes will see between a quarter and a third of the children in their area per month so these figures are broadly in line with expectations. Over the course of a year we expect that all families with young children will have some contact with their local Sure Start programme.

Reading (Teaching Methods)

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will make a statement on her plans to review the methods of teaching reading.

Jacqui Smith: Primary schools, supported by the National Literacy Strategy, have the highest standards of literacy ever. The Strategy has evolved to take account of the latest developments, and the time is right to renew the literacy framework, to build on this success. To inform this work, I have appointed Jim Rose to review best practice in the teaching of early reading, including synthetic phonics, and the range of provision to support children with significant literacy difficulties.

Prisons (Literacy)

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will make a statement on literacy in prisons.

Phil Hope: The Government gives a high priority to improving offenders' literacy skills. During 2004–5, offenders in custody achieved almost 30,000 nationally accredited literacy qualifications—a major contribution to the Government's targets for improving basic skills.

School Funding (Bournemouth)

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will make a statement on school funding in Bournemouth.

Jacqui Smith: On the latest available figures, funding for pupils aged 3–19 in Bournemouth increased by £750 per pupil in real terms between 1997–98 and 2005–06.

Acts of Parliament (Internet Access)

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will take steps to make all Acts of Parliament published before 1988 for which her Department is responsible available on-line.

Jacqui Smith: The Controller of Her Majesty's Stationery Office (HMSO) within the Cabinet Office is the Queen's Printer of Acts of Parliament, and responsible for the publication of Acts of Parliament. HMSO has considered the publication of Acts prior to 1988, which is the earliest date when these were available electronically, but has decided not to do so as many have been heavily amended and to publish them in their original form would be misleading for many users. The Government are, however, taking forward development of a Statute Law Database which will contain the fully revised and updated text of all legislation from 1275. It is expected that this will be made available to the general public during 2006.

Attainment Seminar

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will list those invited to attend the seminar on international studies of attainment on 4 July.

Bill Rammell: The following individuals, representing a range of interests and expertise in international comparisons studies of attainment have been invited, together with appropriate DFES officials, to attend a seminar on this subject scheduled for 4 July 2005:
	Mr. John Bangs, National Union of Teachers
	Dr. Jenny Bradshaw, National Foundation for Educational Research
	Professor Margaret Brown, King's College London
	Mr. Richard Browne, Qualifications and Curriculum Authority
	Dr. Siobhan Carey, Department for International Development
	Dr. Jude Cosgrove, St. Patrick's College, Drumconora
	Mr. Keith Davies, Welsh Assembly Government
	Mr. Steve Doo, Professional Association of Teachers
	Mr. John Dunford, Secondary Heads Association
	Dr. Tony Gardiner, University of Birmingham
	Mr. Chris Girdler, National Association of Headteachers
	Professor Harvey Goldstein, Institute of Education, University of London
	Professor Stephen Gorard, University of York
	Professor John Gray, University of Cambridge
	Dr. Rachael Harker, Office for National Statistics
	Professor Wynne Harlen, University of Bristol
	Dr. Seamus Hegarty, Director of the National Foundation for Educational Research and General Secretary of the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement
	Professor David Hopkins, Institute of Education, University of London
	Ms Sue Horner, Qualifications and Curriculum Association
	Mr. Martin Johnson, Association of Teachers and Lecturers
	Dr. Ivor Johnston, Department of Education, Northern Ireland
	Dr. Jo Macdonald, Scottish Executive
	Professor John Micklewright, University of Southampton
	Professor Peter Mortimore, ex-Institute of Education, University of London
	Mr. Darren Northcott, National Association of Schoolmasters Union of Women Teachers
	Dr. Tim Gates, Qualifications and Curriculum Authority
	Professor Sig Prais, National Institute for Economic and Social Research
	Professor David Reynolds, University of Exeter
	Ms Melissa Rice, Statistics Commission
	Dr. Graham Ruddock, National Foundation for Educational Research
	Professor Pam Sammons, University of Nottingham
	Dr. lan Schagen, National Foundation for Educational Research
	Dr. Andreas Schleicher, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
	Dr. Sylke Schnepf, University of Southampton
	Dr. Gerry Shiel, St. Patrick's College, Drumconora
	Dr. Patten Smith, British Market Research Bureau
	Professor Alan Smithers, University of Buckingham
	Dr. Patrick Sturgis, University of Surrey
	Dr. Graham Thorpe, University of Glasgow
	Dr. Chris Whetton, National Foundation for Educational Research
	Dr. Julia Whitburn, National Institute for Economic and Social Research

Bournemouth and Poole FE College

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills for what reasons the budget of Bournemouth and Poole College of Further Education for the academic year 2005/06 is being reduced.

Bill Rammell: holding answer 25 May 2005
	Funding for further education is increasing and will rise by over £1 billion in 2005/06 compared to 2002/03—almost a 20 per cent. real terms increase over three years. Funding increases for individual colleges will depend on a number of factors including the extent to which college activities align with our key priorities. The Learning and Skills Council (LSC) have not yet confirmed Bournemouth and Poole College's allocation for 2005/06. As the allocation of funding to colleges relates to the LSC's operational responsibilities. I have asked the LSC's Chief Executive, Mark Haysom, to write to the hon. Member with the information requested. A copy of his reply will be placed in the Library.
	Letter from Mark Haysom to Annette Brooke, dated 9 June 2005
	I write in response to your recent Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Education and Skills regarding FE funding for Bournemouth and Poole College. Following discussions with colleagues who work with the College, I hope the following will answer your concerns.
	Bournemouth and Poole College's Further Education allocation for 2004/05 was £22,684,000. The budget for this year, (2005/06) has been confirmed at £23,134,337—an actual increase on the previous year. Written confirmation of this amount was given to the college on 27 May.
	The LSC is aware that some FE institutions are warning of serious cuts in courses for adults, particularly part-time courses, to make ends meet while others talk of the need for staff redundancies. We have always been clear that this funding round was going to be tough and that the whole sector is going to have to make difficult choices.
	None of this is due to the LSC cutting FE budgets. In fact we have increased FE funding nationally from £3.5 billion to £4.5billion from 2001/02 to 2005/06, an increase of 29 per cent. This year we will be increasing national funding by a further £170 million. This increase is reflected across the country with Bournemouth and Poole College seeing an increase of £450,337.
	The fact that budgets have increased does not disguise the immense challenges ahead. Public funds are always finite and there will never be enough money to do all that the LSC or the FE colleges would like to do. There are a number of key factors to explain why colleges like Bournemouth and Poole are feeling the funding squeeze. The first is their success in driving up participation and achievement. For example, we now have the highest ever level of 16–18 year olds in education and training. These numbers have to be funded and this has put a strain on budgets, leaving less for other areas and ensuring that money will be tight in the next academic year and beyond.
	Funding is also being squeezed because we are concentrating funding on key priorities we have agreed with the Government in the areas of education and training for 16–18 year olds, young people taking Apprenticeships, anyone needing to improve their literacy and numeracy and anyone without a full level 2 qualification. These priorities are vital to delivering the Government's Skills Strategy.
	Copies of The Skills We Need": Our Annual Statement of Priorities, which sets out the key actions for this coming year, were distributed during December 2004 and this was followed by a paper outlining local priorities, several group presentations and one to one meetings with the College. The last of these was held on May 12 to finalise allocations and gave them a week to respond with views.
	We recognise this situation will not be easy and we understand that some colleges find it difficult to reduce courses outside our priorities. That is why we believe they can develop additional funding by increasing the fees for those individuals with higher-level qualifications and from employers.
	The Skills Strategy clearly emphasised the need for employers and individuals to contribute more in relation to the significant benefits they receive from education and training. That is why following consultation last year, the LSC increased the levels colleges are assumed to charge for courses from 25 per cent. to 27.5 per cent. Raising fees is designed to ensure public funds are concentrated on those people with low or no skills to bring about a better balance between public and private investment in education and training.
	In the summer of 2004, I discussed with college principals from all parts of the country the major and urgent issues facing further education. The extensive dialogue was an essential part of the LSC's commitment to work in partnership with FE in a spirit of trust, openness and transparency.
	Following this we produced an agenda for change, identifying issues crucial to the transformation of FE to meet the needs of learners and employers. For our part, the LSC made very clear the scale of the challenges that we face together and the transformation agenda that we must pursue in FE to meet those challenges. I will be speaking further about our progress during a second series of regional road shows planned for this summer.
	Trish Taylor, Executive Director for Bournemouth, Dorset and Poole plans to keep you updated throughout this year with progress against our priorities for Bournemouth, Dorset and Poole. In the meantime, I hope this letter answers your questions regarding funding for Bournemouth and Poole College.

Bullying

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills pursuant to the answer of 7 June 2005, Official Report, column 472W, on bullying, what the (a) membership, (b) funding for 2005–06, (c) terms of reference and (d) date of the last meeting of the Change for Children Programme Board are; what work it has commissioned; and how often it has met since it was established.

Beverley Hughes: The Every Child Matters: Change for Children programme board is an official-level cross-Government programme board chaired by DfES to oversee delivery of the Every Child Matters: Change for Children programme. It reports to the new Cabinet Sub-Committee DA(CP). The programme board has met eight times since it was established and the last meeting was on 24 May 2005. Members are senior officials from key Government Departments and inspectorates and include the Children's Commissioner for England as an independent observer. Meetings are funded from administrative costs from the relevant Government Departments.

Child Care

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what steps she is taking to encourage fathers to become more involved in caring for children.

Beverley Hughes: Research has shown that fathers play a vital part in children's lives and that they can make a real difference in children's educational, emotional and social development, for both girls and boys. We have introduced a range of measures aimed at supporting fathers in their important role. For example, we have developed materials for schools on working with fathers, including a booklet on Engaging Fathers" and an Involving Parents Raising Achievement" toolkit. We have supported, through the Parenting Fund and the Strengthening Families Grant, projects run by organisations in the Voluntary and Community Sector which focus on fathers. We are currently considering what further measures we might put in place to meet the specific needs of fathers, and particularly to encourage them to support their children's development and learning, as we develop our work to support parents more generally.

Education and Skills Funding

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what reviews her Department has undertaken in the last five years of the way funding for education and skills has been used.

Maria Eagle: The following reviews of education and skills have been undertaken in the last five years:
	
		
			 Review/consultation—Date of completion Aim 
		
		
			 Review of English Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) Provision—February 2005. Jointly undertaken with the Learning and Skills Council (LSC). A review of ESOL to determine current practices and issues and to make recommendations on how the planning and funding of ESOL may be improved. 
			 Consultation on new school funding arrangements—May 2005. To explore the mechanisms for funding schools covering the introduction of new school funding arrangements from April 2006. 
			 Review of LEA Social Deprivation Funding for Schools—Publication due late 2005. To examine ways in which Local Education Authorities (LEAs) fund schools for the higher costs incurred from socially deprived pupils, and recommend improvements. 
			 Student Finance Review—January 2003 To explore options for student finance in higher education (HE). 
			 Fundamental Review of HE—January 2003 To undertake a wide ranging and fundamental review of the mission for HE including widening participation, research, teaching and management and leadership. 
			 Review of Funding for Adult Learning—July 2003 To explore incentives and ways of encouraging responsiveness to employer needs and reforming funding arrangements to enable the RDA role. 
			 Success for All—October 2002 Consultation on the Department's proposed investment and reform strategy for the learning and skills sector. 
			 Review of Financial Support for Adult Learning—2000 To consider how learning accounts could be further developed and loans for adult learners made more widely available. 
			 Learning to Succeed: Post-16 Funding: Second Technical Paper—2000 Consultation on new funding arrangements for post-16 education and skills.

EU Students

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills for what reasons no specific provision was made in the Higher Education Act 2004 for EU students in respect of (a) bursaries and (b) recovery of fee loans.

Bill Rammell: The content of the Higher Education Act 2004 was decided by Parliament after full debate. Parliament did not decide to include specific provisions about bursaries or loan repayments for any students, whether or not from the European Union.

EU Students

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what her estimate is of the total loan subsidy consequent on the non-commercial rate of interest charged by the Student Loan Company for EU students studying in England in each year between 2006 and 2010.

Bill Rammell: Assuming that 91 per cent. of EU students are charged the full £3,000 fee and 9 per cent. charged £2,000, and assuming that 80 per cent. of them take out a fee loan and that their repayment behaviour is similar to English and Welsh students, costs are estimated to be around £40 million 1 per year (steady state at academic year 2006/07 terms). These costs are made up of the interest rate subsidy of loans together with the costs that are never repaid for example loans that are written off after 25 years or death.
	The costs of EU students studying in the UK are offset by the longer term economic benefits which they bring. It is estimated that each EU student provides a net benefit of over £6,000 per year in living expenses to the UK 2 . Multiplying this estimate for individual contributions to the UK economy by the estimated number of eligible EU students suggests that these students alone contribute £270 million per year. Of the known first destinations of EU undergraduates, 25 per cent. remain in the UK to work after graduation and on average they pay £5,000 in income tax over 1.5 years 2 . In addition there are substantial unquantifiable benefits to the UK. In particular, the UK benefits from an addition to its stock of employed manpower of a significant number of highly skilled young people. Other benefits arise from the contribution of these EU students and researchers within UK HEIs, and from having a significant proportion of the young future elite of Europe living, studying and working in this country for an important and formative period in their lives.
	1 Rounded to the nearest £10 million.
	2 Higher Education Policy Institute (HEPI) report Projecting demand for UK HE from the Accession Countries" published March 2004.

EU Students

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what representations she has received concerning costs incurred by higher education institutions in obtaining legal advice regarding their liabilities to make bursary or financial support available to EU students from 2006.

Bill Rammell: None.

Faith Awareness Training

Paul Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State forEducation and Skills how many civil servants in theDepartment received faith awareness training in 2004.

Maria Eagle: From April 2004 to March 2005, 45 staff received faith awareness training, as part of a wider session on sexual orientation, religion and belief awareness.
	The Department's intranet site provides comprehensive guidance on faith awareness for all staff, and is accessible at all times.

Freedom of Speech (SOAS)

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills pursuant to the answer of 6 June 2005, Official Report, column 335W, on freedom of speech, what measures she is taking to ensure that the governing body of the School of Oriental and African Studies is fulfilling its duties in this regard.

Bill Rammell: The duties on governing bodies of universities to ensure freedom of speech are statutory ones, capable of being enforced at law where a governing body has failed to carry out its responsibilities. There is no provision for the Government directly to intervene, but I am keeping in touch with developments in the sector. In particular, Iwelcome the intention of the sector, working through its Equality Challenge Unit, to produce guidance for universities on tackling extremism and intolerance on campus.

GCSEs

David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills whether parts of the course content for GCSE qualifications in (a) home economics and (b) design technology are replicated in the course content for the GCSE in food technology.

Bill Rammell: GCSEs exist in Home Economics (food and nutrition) and Design Technology (food technology). The focus of each specification is very different. Design and Technology (food technology) covers food materials and components; food product design; development and market influences; and food process and product manufacture.
	Home Economics (food and nutrition) looks at nutrition in relation to the preparation and cooking of food; the relationship between nutrition and good health; and the effect of the marketing and advertising of food products on consumer choice.

Graduate Earnings

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  what research she has collated on the lifetime levels of earnings of (a) graduates and (b) non-graduates;
	(2)  if she will make a statement on the recent research findings at Swansea University that graduates can expect to earn £140,000 more over their lifetimes compared with non-graduates.

Bill Rammell: Data on lifetime earnings are rare, but we do impute such information from cross-section data sets. The following table shows gross weekly average earnings for graduates and non-graduates, by age bands. It demonstrates that the premium rises with age, as a degree opens doors to promotion and progression over the working life which are closed to non-graduates.
	
		
			  First/foundation degree (£) Level 3 and below (£) Percentage difference 
		
		
			 20–24 356 283 26 
			 25–29 472 354 34 
			 30–34 612 422 45 
			 35–39 728 445 64 
			 40–44 780 434 80 
			 45–49 719 433 66 
			 50–54 768 406 89 
			 55–59 726 385 89 
			 Total working age 610 388 57 
		
	
	Source:
	Winter 2004 LFS. Gross weekly earnings for full-time employees in England.
	We prefer to present this type of data in another format—most importantly using an accounting technique to express the benefit to a degree at today's valuation, and stripping out any other effects not related to the qualification itself.
	In doing so, the average lifetime financial benefit to a degree, compared to holders of A-levels as their highest qualification, is £120,000 in present value terms—as outlined in a previous written answer to the House (PQ140797, 8 December 2003).
	This is entirely consistent with the University of Wales' research. It represents a strong financial benefit to university education, and provides a clear message that employers need graduates and the extra productivity and innovation that they bring to the economy.

Higher Education

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of Statefor Education and Skills what progress has been made towards achieving the target of 50 per cent. of all 18 to 30-year-olds going on to higher education by 2010.

Bill Rammell: The Department measures progress on its target of increasing participation in higher education towards 50 per cent. of those aged 18 to 30 by 2010 through the higher education initial participation rate (HEIPR). The HEIPR has risen from 41 per cent. in 1999–2000 to 43 per cent.(provisionally) in 2003–04.
	Further information on the HEIPR is available in DfES Statistical First Release 14/2005 Participation Rates in Higher Education: Academic Years 1999/2000–2003/04 (Provisional)" published on 14 April 2005 and available from the House of Commons Library.

Higher Education

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what percentage of individuals who entered higher education came from each social class in each of the past 10 years for which figures are available.

Bill Rammell: The latest available information showing the proportion of young (under 21) people from each social class who enter higher education is shown in the table. The Government are committed to widening participation in higher education (HE). The Aimhigher Programme, alongside, from 2006, grants and higher education institution bursaries for students from poorer backgrounds, will enable a wider range of people to be able and willing to enter HE.
	
		Age Participation Index (API)(13) by social class -- Percentage
		
			  Social class 
			 Year of entry I II IIIn IIIm IV V I-IIIn IIIm-V 
		
		
			 1991 55 36 22 11 12 6 35 11 
			 1992 71 39 27 15 14 9 40 14 
			 1992 73 42 29 17 16 11 43 16 
			 1994 78 45 31 18 17 11 46 17 
			 1995 80 46 31 18 17 12 47 17 
			 1996 82 47 32 18 17 13 48 18 
			 1997 79 48 31 19 18 14 48 18 
			 1998 72 45 29 18 17 13 45 17 
			 1999 73 45 30 18 17 13 45 17 
			 2000 76 48 33 19 19 14 48 18 
			 2001 79 50 33 21 18 15 50 19 
		
	
	(13)The Age Participation index (API) is defined as the number of home domiciled young (aged less than 21) initial entrants to full-time and sandwich undergraduate courses expressed as a proportion of the averaged 18 to 19-year-old GB population. The Age Participation Index has been superseded by the Higher Education Initial Participation Rate (HEIPR) which measures the participation of 18 to 30-year-olds, and in 2002 the social class categories were replaced by a new socio-economic group (SEG) classification. The Department has commissioned a report to look at disaggregating the HEIPR by SEG Class, or recommend other alternatives if this is not possible.
	Note:
	The percentages in the table represent the proportions of students from each given social class who enter HE. (The individual percentages in each column will not therefore sum to 100 per cent.)
	I—Professional
	II—Intermediate
	IIIn—Skilled (non-manual)
	IIIm—Skilled (manual)
	IV—Partially skilled
	V—Unskilled.

Literacy

Mike Gapes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment she has made of literacy standards in primary schools.

Jacqui Smith: Literacy standards in primary schools are the highest that they have ever been. Last year 78 per cent. of 11-year-olds reached the expected level for their age in English Key Stage 2 tests. This represents an increase of 15 percentage points since 1997. In the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) published in 2003, England's 10-year-olds achieved the third highest scores in reading of the 35 countries which took part.

Public Bodies

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the planned (a) staff numbers, (b) resource budget and (c) administration costs of the (i) Learning and Skills Council and (ii) Office of Fair Access are for each year between 2005 and 2010.

Bill Rammell: The Learning and Skills Council's estimated staffing requirement for 2005–06 is 4,230. Staffing numbers have not yet been agreed for the following years, but the LSC will meet its efficiency targets.
	The current budgets allocated to the LSC are provided in the following table. The LSC has in place measures to achieve a planned reduction in administration costs to meet their contribution to the 15 per cent. efficiency savings required across government.
	
		Learning and Skills Council budgets 2005–08 -- £000
		
			  2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 
		
		
			 Resource budget  (excluding administration) 9,766,668 9,339,696 9,821,463 
			 Administration 250,609 248,179 235,444 
			 Total 10,017,277 9,587,875 10,056,907 
		
	
	Notes:
	1.The 2005–06 LSC budget was updated in a letter to the LSC on 13 April 2005.
	2.Budgets for 2006–07 and 2007–08 were set out in the Grant Letter from the Secretary of State to the LSC on 15 November 2004.
	3.The LSC's administration costs include funding for Depreciation and Cost of Capital that in previous years were held centrally in DfES.
	Budgets for 2008–09 and 2009–10 will be set as part of the next spending review.
	The Office of Fair Access has a budget of up to £500,000 for 2005–06 from which it meets its administration costs and performs its statutory functions. Plans for future years will be set in consultation with the Director of Fair Access.

Pupil Behaviour

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  pursuant to the answer of 7 June 2005, Official Report, column 476W, on pupil behaviour, when she expects to (a) collect and (b) publish the first figures on attendance at pupil referral units;
	(2)  pursuant to the answer of 7 June 2005, Official Report, columns 475–76W, on pupil behaviour, when she intends (a) to ask and (b) to require local education authorities to publish figures on attendance at pupil referral units.

Jacqui Smith: We plan to collect and publish figures on attendance at pupil referral units (PRUs) on a regular basis. However, we need to undertake a one-off exercise this year to ensure that the data currently available at PRUs are recorded in a suitable format for publication. We intend to issue the request for the data to local authorities in November 2005, with a view to collecting it in February 2006, and publishing it in April 2006. In the coming months, we also plan to amend the Education (School Performance Information) Regulations 2001, to require local authorities to provide these attendance figures to my Department at regular intervals, for publication.

Pupil Behaviour

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills pursuant to the answer of 7 June 2005, Official Report, columns 475–76W, on pupil behaviour, what the process is for collection of information on attendance from local education authorities for (a) maintained schools, (b) independent schools and (c) pupil referral units.

Jacqui Smith: The Department collects data on pupil absences directly from schools through our contractor, Forvus.
	(a) From this school year, maintained schools have been asked to submit data in January and April on overall pupil absences in the autumn and spring terms respectively. These new termly collections do not require schools to distinguish between authorised and unauthorised absences. Data on authorised and unauthorised absences for the period from the beginning of the school year to the May half-term are collected from maintained schools in June each year.
	(b) Independent schools participate only in the annual data collection in June.
	(c) At present, pupil referral units are not required to submit data for either the termly or annual collections. We are currently considering the best way to arrange for the collection of absence data from pupil referral units which we expect to publish in April 2006.

Pupil Funding

Stephen Crabb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the average (a) secondary and (b) primary school funding per pupil in England (i) was in 1997 and (ii) is in the current financial year.

Jacqui Smith: The average funding per primary pupil (aged 3–10) and per secondary pupil (aged 11–15) in England for 1997–98 and 2005–06 is:
	
		
			  1997–98 2005–06 
		
		
			 Pupils aged 3–10 2,390 3,600 
			 Pupils aged 11–15 3,260 4,410 
		
	
	Notes:
	These figures are in real terms and include funding via Education Formula Spending/Standard Spending Assessment and revenue grants allocated at an LEA level. The 2005–06 figures exclude the pensions transfer to EFS.
	Price Base: Real terms at 2003–04 prices, based on GDP deflators as at 23 March 2005
	Figures reflect relevant sub-blocks of education SSA/EFS settlements and exclude the pensions transfer to EFS.
	Total funding also includes all revenue grants in DfES Departmental Expenditure Limits relevant to pupils aged 3–10 and 11–15 and exclude EMAs and grants not allocated at LEA level.
	The pupil numbers used to convert £ million figures to £ per pupil are those underlying the SSA/EFS settlement calculations.
	Rounding: Figures are rounded to the nearest £10.
	Status: 2005–06 figures are provisional as some grants have not yet been finalised/audited.

Religious Education

Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what guidance is issued by her Department on the teaching of Christianity in schools.

Maria Eagle: We recently launched a new national framework for religious education to support the delivery of high quality religious education in schools. This reinforces the position of Christianity as the main religious tradition of this country. It also provides opportunities for pupils to study the principal religions in Great Britain, other religious traditions and secular philosophies in line with the Government's goals of inclusion, tolerance and diversity.

School Building

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills which Building Schools for the Future projects will include building for the special schools sector; whether each will provide (a) new buildings and (b) improvements to existing buildings; what the cost will be of each such project; and in which wave of Building Schools for the Future they will occur.

Jacqui Smith: Building Schools for the Future aims to ensure that all secondary-age pupils are educated in 21st-century facilities, whether in mainstream or special schools. We expect all local authorities that have special schools to include them in their plans. As for mainstream schools, depending on local circumstances, these plans can include new buildings and/or improvements to existing buildings. Costs of each project are only identified as they proceed through procurement and are not finalised until contract signature. We have indicated to local authorities broadly where in the 15-year programme their projects will come, but have not specified in which wave.
	Building Schools for the Future is not the only programme which supports building improvements in special schools. Each special school receives its own allocation of Devolved Formula Capital and local authorities can use their formulaic capital allocations to address the needs of special schools, which should be included in their asset management plans. Special schools are also a priority project within the Targeted Capital Fund, and we are currently considering applications for funding in 2006–07 and 2007–08.

School Building

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what estimate she has made of the cost of providing accessible facilities for pupils with disabilities in mainstream schools under the Building Schools for the Future programme.

Jacqui Smith: All mainstream schools built under Building Schools for the Future or other programmes should provide accessible facilities for pupils with special education needs and disabilities. Guidance has been issued to help them do this in Building Bulletin 98.
	Estimates and allocations for Building Schools for the Future reflect the requirements of Building Bulletin 98 as a whole; we have not estimated the cost of accessible provision separately.
	We also support investment to improve the accessibility of school buildings through the School Access Initiative which has run since 1996. Funding for this, which is allocated to each local authority by formula, is £100 million in this and each of the next two financial years.

School Building

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills whether special schools to be built under the Building Schools for the Future programme will include special schools for (a) primary level, (b) joint primary and secondary level, (c) secondary level, (d) secondary level with post-16 provision and (e) post-16 level.

Jacqui Smith: Special schools to be built under Building Schools for the Future include those for joint primary and secondary level, secondary level, and secondary level with post-16 provision. Special schools for primary level will be included in the new primary capital programme announced by my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer in his 2005 budget. There are no special schools for just post-16 level. Capital investment in specialist colleges is directed through the Learning and Skills Council.

Schools (Weapons)

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills on how many occasions in the last 12 months a pupil at a state secondary school in England has been found to be in possession of a weapon on school premises.

Jacqui Smith: A Youth Justice Board survey in 2004 showed that 1 per cent. of age 11–16 pupils in England and Wales had at some time in the last year carried a knife in school for offensive reasons, and 2 per cent. for defensive" reasons. We propose to give head teachers a power to search for knives, and will add to existing guidance on how police, schools and other local agencies can work together, to keep knives out of our schools.

Secondary Education (Newark)

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what plans she has for improvements to secondary education in Newark.

Jacqui Smith: Ministers have no specific plans for improvements to secondary education in Newark. The Department's strategy for children and learners sets out how we intend to achieve improvements over the next five years for children's services, and for education and lifelong learning.

Social Exclusion

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills pursuant to the answer of 7 June 2005, Official Report, column 482W, if she will make a statement on the progress towards reaching the public service agreement target to which she refers; and how this is measured.

Beverley Hughes: The Department has a PSA target to Improve children's communication; social and emotional development so that by 2008 50 per cent. of children reach a good level of development at the end of the Foundation Stage, and reduce inequalities between the level of development achieved by children in the 20 per cent. most disadvantaged areas and the rest of England".
	The 50 per cent. level, set in July 2004 and covering the period April 2005 to March 2008, was based on the 2003 Foundation Stage Profile (FSP) results. The target level is provisional as the 2003 FSP data were experimental statistics". The 2005 results, which will be published in a Statistical First Release in October, will inform the calculation of a challenging trajectory to enable the progress made by children to be measured. The 2005 survey will also collect for the first time information about children in the 20 per cent. most disadvantaged areas and this will be used to measure the rate of development achieved by children in these areas compared to the national picture. The figures from the 2004 survey indicate that 51 per cent. of children are working securely within the Early Learning Goals for communication, social and emotional development.

Special Educational Needs

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the Government's policy is on the teaching of children with special needs in mainstream schools.

Maria Eagle: The Government's overarching priority for children with SEN is that their needs should be met in an appropriate way, through an appropriate package of support. Children with less significant needs should in general be able to have their needs met in a mainstream environment, provided that appropriate support is in place. However, we recognise that mainstream schools are not suitable for some children with special educational needs. Both mainstream and special schools have a significant role to play.
	There needs to be a range of high quality provision for pupils for whom mainstream education may not be right, or may not be what their parents want. There must be strong links between special schools, mainstream schools, special units and resourced provision. This type of partnership working is a key aspect of the Government's published strategy on SEN—Removing Barriers to Achievement".

Special Needs Tribunals

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many special needs tribunals took place in the last year for which information is available, broken down by local education authority.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 13 June 2005
	The followingtable shows the numbers of SEN appeals decided by the Special Educational Needs and Disability Tribunal in the last full Tribunal year, September 2003 to August 2004.
	The numbers of SEN appeals decided by the Special Educational Needs and Disability Tribunal in the last full Tribunal year, September 2003 to August 2004, were as follows:
	
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 Barking and Dagenham 7 
			 Barnet 16 
			 Barnsley 7 
			 Bath and NE Somerset 3 
			 Bedfordshire 8 
			 Bexley 3 
			 Birmingham 51 
			 Blackburn 4 
			 Blackpool 1 
			 Bolton 6 
			 Bournemouth 1 
			 Bracknell Forest 2 
			 Bradford 8 
			 Brent 11 
			 Bridgend 1 
			 Brighton and Hove 9 
			 Bristol City 17 
			 Bromley 48 
			 Buckinghamshire 4 
			 Bury 8 
			 Caerphilly 3 
			 Calderdale 12 
			 Cambridgeshire 5 
			 Camden 3 
			 Cardiff 6 
			 Carmarthenshire 2 
			 Cheshire 10 
			 Cornwall 17 
			 Coventry 1 
			 Croydon 17 
			 Cumbria 6 
			 Darlington 5 
			 Derby City 4 
			 Derbyshire 9 
			 Devon 6 
			 Doncaster 7 
			 Dorset 3 
			 Dudley 2 
			 Durham 12 
			 Ealing 10 
			 East Riding of Yorkshire 5 
			 East Sussex 40 
			 Enfield 3 
			 Essex 25 
			 Flintshire 1 
			 Gateshead 4 
			 Gloucestershire 8 
			 Greenwich 11 
			 Gwynedd 1 
			 Hackney 11 
			 Halton 1 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 2 
			 Hampshire 28 
			 Haringey 14 
			 Harrow 10 
			 Herefordshire 2 
			 Hertfordshire 34 
			 Hillingdon 9 
			 Hounslow 4 
			 Isle of Wight 5 
			 Islington 3 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 6 
			 Kent 35 
			 Kingston upon Thames 7 
			 Kingston-upon-Hull, City 4 
			 Kirkiees 5 
			 Knowsley 3 
			 Lambeth 28 
			 Lancashire 7 
			 Leeds 9 
			 Leicester City 5 
			 Leicestershire 20 
			 Lewisham 28 
			 Lincolnshire 23 
			 Liverpool 11 
			 Luton 5 
			 Manchester 10 
			 Medway 1 
			 Merton 5 
			 Milton Keynes 1 
			 Monmouthshire 2 
			 Neath PortTalbot 2 
			 Newcastle upon Tyne 5 
			 Newham 11 
			 Newport 6 
			 Norfolk 19 
			 North Lincolnshire 3 
			 North Somerset 5 
			 North Tyneside 1 
			 North Yorkshire 5 
			 Northamptonshire 6 
			 Northumberland 1 
			 Nottinghamshire 4 
			 Oldham 5 
			 Oxfordshire 14 
			 Peterborough 4 
			 Plymouth 1 
			 Poole 3 
			 Portsmouth 4 
			 Redbridge 9 
			 Redcar and Cleveland 1 
			 Richmond upon Thames 13 
			 Rotherham 6 
			 Salford 7 
			 Sandwell 3 
			 Sefton 6 
			 Sheffield 4 
			 Shropshire 4 
			 Slough 3 
			 Somerset 19 
			 South Gloucestershire 8 
			 South Tyneside 1 
			 Southampton 6 
			 Southend 4 
			 Southwark 8 
			 St Helens 1 
			 Staffordshire 21 
			 Stockport 3 
			 Stockton-on-Tees 1 
			 Suffolk 18 
			 Sunderland 4 
			 Surrey 29 
			 Sutton 2 
			 Swansea 1 
			 Swindon 2 
			 Thameside 1 
			 Telford and Wrekin 2 
			 Thurrock 3 
			 Torbay 4 
			 Tower Hamlets 1 
			 Trafford 2 
			 Wakefield 5 
			 Walsall 21 
			 Waltham Forest 3 
			 Wandsworth 9 
			 Warwickshire 6 
			 West Sussex 12 
			 Westminster 7 
			 Wigan 5 
			 Wiltshire 19 
			 Windsor and Maidenhead 4 
			 Wirral 5 
			 Wokingham 1 
			 Wolverhampton 2 
			 Worcestershire 9 
			 York City 1 
			 Total 1,196

Teacher Assaults

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many teachers were assaulted by pupils in each London borough in each year since 2000; and if she will make a statement.

Jacqui Smith: The information requested is not collected centrally.

Tuition Fees

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what her estimate is of the (a) number and (b) percentage of (i) higher education institutions and (ii) further education colleges that are planning to charge the full tuition fee of £3,000 from 2006.

Bill Rammell: Based on information released by the Office for Fair Access on 17 March 2005, we estimate that around 91 per cent. of HEIs and FECs are planning to charge the full tuition fee of £3,000. Based on access agreements assessed before 4 March 2005, 110 HEI's and FEC's were planning to charge the full fee of £3,000.

University College Worcester

Michael Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills when she expects a decision to be made on extending full university status to University College Worcester.

Bill Rammell: We are awaiting advice from the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education (QAA) on University College Worcester's application for university title. We expect to receive this soon.

University Departments (Closures)

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many (a) physics, (b) mathematics and (c) chemistry departments in universities have closed since 1997.

Bill Rammell: Information on the closure, merger or opening of particular university courses and departments is not collected by the Department. Higher education institutions are autonomous organisations responsible for their own academic direction and strategic use of funds, and any decisions on closures of departments are made by them, not by Government or the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE).
	The then Secretary of State for Education and Skills wrote to the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) at the beginning of December 2004 asking their advice on what types of action should be considered to strengthen and secure subjects of strategic national importance, including mathematics and science. HEFCE have set up an expert group to look at this issue and to report to the HEFCE board this month. The board will inform Ministers of the outcome.

SOLICITOR-GENERAL

Sentencing Policy

Andrew Turner: To ask the Solicitor-General how many requests have been made in the past 12 months for the review of lenient sentences.

Mike O'Brien: For the period 1 June 2004 to 15 June 2005, 330 cases raising issues of unduly lenient sentences were submitted to the Law Offices for referral to the Court of Appeal. Requests came from the CPS, victims, their families, members of the public and Members of Parliament.
	98 of the cases were referred to the Court of Appeal.

Witness Care Units

Ben Chapman: To ask the Solicitor-General if he will make a statement on witness care units in Merseyside.

Mike O'Brien: A pilot Witness Care Unit jointly staffed by the Crown Prosecution Service and police is currently dealing with North and South Sefton Magistrates Court cases and some Crown court work.
	A Merseyside Witness Care Unit will be opened in October 2005. It will deal with all cases for the entire county. It will consist of 36 police and CPS staff; it will be based at Tithebarn House in Liverpool.

Ball-bearing Guns

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Solicitor-General how many prosecutions there were in England and Wales for illegal use of ball-bearing guns in the last year for which figures are available.

Mike O'Brien: Crown Prosecution Service records include a count of the number of prosecutions under particular Acts of Parliament, and under specific sections of each Act. However, the offences in question are not the subject of discrete legislation, and CPS records therefore provide no indication of the number of proceedings undertaken.

Domestic Violence

Barbara Follett: To ask the Solicitor-General what steps the Crown Prosecution Service is taking to raise awareness of its measures to tackle domestic violence, with particular reference to Hertfordshire.

Mike O'Brien: After the passing of the Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims Act last year, the CPS published its revised public policy statement on domestic violence in February 2005. Its national network of domestic violence co-ordinators engage with specialists in other agencies and represent the CPS in local domestic violence forums. The CPS recognises that awareness raising and confidence building are important elements of its work against domestic violence. CPS Hertfordshire works constructively with its criminal justice partners and NGOs in the county to raise awareness of domestic violence as an issue and of strategies for dealing with it. For example, in March 2004 it was fully represented at the Hertfordshire Criminal Justice Board open day in Stevenage.

Criminal Trials (Special Measures)

Vera Baird: To ask the Solicitor General what monitoring he undertakes of the relationship between the granting of special measures in criminal trials and the outcome of trials.

Mike O'Brien: This type of monitoring is not undertaken. A correlation cannot be made between a special measures direction and a trial's outcome. The weight to be attached to a piece of evidence is a matter for the magistrates/jury. Where special measures are used, witnesses appear to appreciate them.

Ministers (Prosecutions)

David Howarth: To ask the Solicitor-General what criteria the Law Officers apply in deciding whether to enter a plea of nolle prosequi in the case of a Minister of the Crown prosecuted for a criminal offence.

Mike O'Brien: The Law Officers act as guardians of the public interest when considering whether to enter a plea of nolle prosequi. In such cases, they apply the principles set out in the Code for Crown Prosecutors. Whether the defendant whose case is under consideration is a Minister of the Crown or not is irrelevant to their decision.

Proceeds of Crime Act

David Kidney: To ask the Solicitor General what the success rate of prosecutors in securing orders in criminal cases under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 has been since their introduction.

Mike O'Brien: Prosecutors from the Crown Prosecution Service, the Serious Fraud Office, Revenue and Customs Prosecutions Office and other prosecutors make applications for restraint and confiscation orders under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (POCA).
	Since April 2004, the Joint Asset Recovery Database figures show that prosecutors have made 653 applications for restraint under POCA and earlier legislation, of which 650 have been successful. In the same period prosecutors have prepared 3,165 confiscation applications under POCA and earlier legislation, of which 2,007 POCA and 1,023 pre-POCA orders have been granted by the Crown Court.

Serious Fraud Office

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Solicitor General whether the Serious Fraud Office will investigate all cases of foreign bribery that pass through vetting stage.

Mike O'Brien: Given the public interest in maintaining the reputation of British industry abroad and the sums involved in the contracts concerned, it is likely that any such allegation would be investigated by the Serious Fraud Office depending on the weight of the evidence and whether the public interest would be served.
	The Serious Fraud Office has been nominated as the Department that will vet all foreign bribery cases and as such will take the decision whether or not it will retain cases or pass them to other authorities.

Serious Fraud Office

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Solicitor General 
	(1)  if he will list the jurisdictions to which the Serious Fraud Office provides mutual legal assistance with regard to allegations of overseas corruption offences;
	(2)  how many requests for mutual legal assistance from foreign jurisdictions the Serious Fraud Office has received which relate to allegations of overseas corruption offences in the last 10 years; and if he will listthe jurisdictions from which these requests have come;
	(3)  how many requests for mutual legal assistance from foreign jurisdictions received by the Serious Fraud Office with regard to overseas corruption have resulted in domestic investigations being opened by the Serious Fraud Office in each of the last five years.

Mike O'Brien: To identify mutual legal assistance requests involving corruption over a 10 year period would incur disproportionate cost.
	Since 1 January 2001, the Mutual Legal Assistance (MLA) Unit of the Serious Fraud Office has received seven requests for assistance in cases involving corruption offences. These may relate to allegations of corruption by UK citizens or companies overseas, or to corruption by individuals or entities of the referring state.
	The SFO does not disclose details of assistance provided to overseas investigations without consent from the referring jurisdiction or unless the referring jurisdiction has made public disclosures. The requests for assistance already in the public domain were from France and Norway.
	In the last five years, there have been no requests for assistance involving corruption from overseas jurisdictions which have resulted in a domestic investigation being opened by the Serious Fraud Office. In 2003 a domestic investigation was opened following a request for assistance from Bosnia and Herzegovina concerning bribery offences as specified by the referring jurisdiction.

Serious Fraud Office

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Solicitor General how many investigations into allegations of overseas corruption the Serious Fraud Office is conducting; and how many allegations are being vetted.

Mike O'Brien: The SFO is currently investigating four cases involving allegations of overseas corruption by British companies or individuals. In addition, there are 13 cases currently being vetted to decide if a full investigation should be instigated.

Serious Fraud Office

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Solicitor General what action he is taking to ensure that the Serious Fraud Office has appropriate funding to pursue foreign bribery investigations.

Mike O'Brien: The budget allocated to the SFO will increase in 2005–06 to £35.4 million to allow the SFO to continue to accept referrals that meet the acceptance criteria of the Department. To date, the SFO has not declined any allegations of overseas bribery due to insufficient resources.

Serious Fraud Office

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Solicitor General what action he is taking to implement the OECD's recommendation that the Serious Fraud Office's role in leading foreign bribery investigations be confirmed.

Mike O'Brien: The Government is currently considering how best to take forward the recommendations outlined by the OECD in their phase 2 report and will report on progress to the OECD Bribery Working Group in December. Part of the work that is being considered by Departments in response to the issue of overseas corruption is a rationalisation of the law enforcement response.
	Guidance which governs implementation of the revised version of the Memorandum of Understanding will be placed in the Library of the House of Commons.

United States (Extradition)

Andrew MacKinlay: To ask the Solicitor-General if he will make a statement on those matters the Department has to take into account and what steps it has to take when it receives a request for extradition from the US.

Mike O'Brien: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) represents the interests of states that seek extradition of persons from the United Kingdom.
	The CPS has to ensure that it fulfils the statutory requirements of the Extradition Act 2003. The United States of America (USA) has been designated a Part 2 territory by order of the Secretary of State; any request from the USA, therefore, has to comply with the requirements of Part 2 of the Act.
	The Secretary of State, who receives the formal extradition request through diplomatic channels, has to certify under section 70 of the Extradition Act 2003 that the request for extradition is valid". A request is valid if it contains the statement that the person is accused in the category 2 territory of the commission of an offence specified in the request or is alleged to be unlawfully at large after conviction by a court in the category 2 territory of an offence specified in the request.
	The USA has been designated in that category of territory that no longer has to provide prima facie sworn evidence on those charges on which extradition is sought.
	On receipt of an extradition request, the CPS checks that it contains the required documents, including an arrest warrant or a certificate of conviction, particulars of the offence and law, and evidence of identity.
	The CPS also has to ensure that the offence specified in the request constitutes an extradition offence as defined by the Act.
	Finally, the CPS checks that the documents are admissible (namely that they are signed by a judge, magistrate or other judicial authority of the USA or are authenticated by the oath of a witness).
	If any part of the extradition request is deficient, the CPS advises the US authorities of the material required to satisfy the court in any ensuing extradition proceedings (which the CPS conducts on behalf of the USA).

HOME DEPARTMENT

Departmental Union Representation

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many trade union learning representatives there are in his Department.

Fiona Mactaggart: There are a total of 68 learning representatives within the Department. This is divided as follows:
	
		
			 Learning representatives in: Number 
		
		
			 The Prison Service(14) 42 
			 The Criminal Records Bureau(15) 11 
			 The United Kingdom Service Passport Service(15) 7 
			 The Immigration and Nationality Directorate(15) 8 
		
	
	(14)Representatives of the Prison Officers Association (POA)
	(15)Representatives of the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS)
	The Prison Service is consulting other recognised unions about the terms of a learning agreement and the appropriate number of related learning representatives. Separately the main Home Office including Immigration and Nationality Directorate is consulting recognised unions about the terms of a learning agreement and the appropriate number of learning representatives.

Eurostar

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether passengers travelling on Eurostar (a) from Waterloo to the continent and (b) from the continent to Waterloo have their baggage checked or searched by officials.

Derek Twigg: I have been asked to reply.
	Security directions served on Eurostar by the UK Department for Transport include requirements for thesearching of a specified minimum proportion of passengers and their baggage at Waterloo and Ashford International stations. The proportion is variable and is commensurate with the prevailing level of threat.
	Security arrangements in France and Belgium are the responsibilities of the French and Belgian Governments respectively. French, Belgian and UK Government officials meet regularly to discuss security and to ensure continued comparability of security standards.

Illegal Labour

John Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prosecutions there were in 2003 and 2004 of employers who employ people illegally resident in this country.

Andy Burnham: Two defendants were proceeded against for Employing a person subject to immigration control who has attained the age of 16" under the Asylum and Immigration Act 1996, Sec eight, England and Wales in 2003.
	Statistics on court proceedings for 2004 will be published in 'Control of Immigration: Statistics United Kingdom 2004' in the autumn.

National Offender Management Service

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the 42 probation boards in England and Wales will be retained under the National Offender Management Service arrangements.

Fiona Mactaggart: Work on the future organisational design of the National Offender Management Service has still to be concluded.

Pedicabs/Rickshaws

Gwyneth Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) sexual and (b) other assaults have been committed by the riders of pedicabs or rickshaws in the last 12 months.

Fiona Mactaggart: It is not possible to identify those riders of pedicabs or rickshaws from the data held on the Home Office Court Proceedings database as this information is not centrally collected.

Police/Crime Statistics (Wales)

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) adults and (b) young people are held in prisons in Wales; and what the operational capacity is of each prison in Wales.

Fiona Mactaggart: The information requested, as recorded on the Prison Service IT system, is provided in the table.
	
		Population and operational capacity of prison establishments, by age group(16)—Wales, 30 April 2005
		
			  Adults Young persons Operational capacity(17) 
		
		
			 Cardiff 735 — 754 
			 Pare 573 386 1,036 
			 Swansea 402 — 425 
			 Usk/Prescoed 414 — 420 
		
	
	(16)Adults are those aged 21 years and over. Young persons are those aged under 21, including some 21-year-olds who have not been reclassified as adults.
	(17)At 29 April 2005.

Prison Education

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the levels of basic (a) literacy and (b) numeracy among (i) male young offenders, (ii) male adult offenders, (iii) female young offenders and (iv) female adult offenders were in each year between 1994 and 2004.

Fiona Mactaggart: The information requested is not collected centrally. However, Home Office statistics show that 43 per cent. of prisoners have numeracy levels below level one and 37 per cent. have reading skills below level one.
	Source:
	Prison Statistics for England and Wales 2002.

Prison Staff (London)

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent representations he has received on the remuneration of London-based prison staff; and if he will make a statement.

Fiona Mactaggart: Each year, the Prison Service invites applications from all prisons for inclusion in its local pay scheme or for increasing existing local pay rates. These applications are considered by the Prison Service Management Board and evidence, which is shared with trade unions, is supplied to the Prison Service Pay Review Body (PSPRB) which considers whether there is a case for adjustment of existing rates. In February, the PSPRB recommended that local pay rates should remain unchanged. The Home Secretary decided to implement the recommendations of the PSPRB in full with the local pay rates for most London prisons remaining at £4,000.

Prisoners (Team Sport)

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what research he has commissioned regarding rates of reoffending by prisoners who play team sports in prison.

Fiona Mactaggart: No studies have been commissioned recently by the Home Office about rates of reoffending by prisoners who play team sports in prison. The last relevant research was the evaluation of the Colchester Military Training Centre as briefly used also for young offenders in the mid-1990s (Home Office Research Study 239, 2002).

Probation Service

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people were employed in the Probation Service in each year since 1997 in (a) Essex and (b) Southend.

Fiona Mactaggart: The requested information is not available for the full period required. Data collected prior to 1 April 2003 is unreliable, and is not directly comparable with the more accurate figures collected since that time. The following figures show full time equivalent (FTE) figures for each quarter from 1 April 2003 to 31 March 2005.
	Staffing information is collected by probation area, and is not collected in sufficient detail to allow figures for Southend to be presented separately. The staffing figures are provided for the Essex probation area only.
	
		Staffing information for Essex probation area
		
			  Essex probation area—FTE in post 
		
		
			 30 June 2003 385.4 
			 30 September 2003 383.7 
			 31 December 2003 393.1 
			 31 March 2004 399.1 
			 30 June 2004 414.7 
			 30 September 2004 406.5 
			 31 December 2004 432.6

Probation Service

Elfyn Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many staff in each probation area were on long-term sickness absence on the latest date available, broken down by grade.

Fiona Mactaggart: The National Probation Directorate does not hold information on how many members of staff are long-term sick within individual probation areas. The directorate monitors overall sickness across the 42 areas and approximately 45 per cent. of sickness absence is defined as long-term i.e. over 20 working days and absence recorded under the Disability Discrimination Act.
	A national working group has been established to review sickness absence across the service and an action plan will be produced in the late summer to reduce absence levels. The National Probation Service has produced what are considered by the HSE to be first class strategies and policies for health and safety and stress. The directorate is currently leading a major project on the development and use of occupational health in the service.

Rainsbrook Secure Training Centre

Sally Keeble: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many of the staff at Rainsbrook Secure Training Centre previously worked at St. John's Centre at Tiffield.

Fiona Mactaggart: Five members of staff currently employed at Rainsbrook previously worked at the St.John's Centre.
	Seven other employees who have now left Rainsbrook were previously employed at St. John's.

Reoffending

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of defendants conditionally discharged for an offence reoffended within the period of discharge.

Fiona Mactaggart: The information is not held in the required form.

Secure Training Centres

Sally Keeble: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what response he will make to the review of the use of restraint in secure training centres; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  if he will publish the review of the use of restraint in secure training centres for young people.

Fiona Mactaggart: My noble Friend the Baroness Scotland is considering advice from the Youth Justice Board on the findings of their review. We will write to my hon. Friend once the Government have decided their response.

Treatment/Rehabilitation of Offenders

Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what facilities and premises are provided by his Department in St. Albans for the provision of (a) treatment testing and (b) rehabilitation of offenders; and if he will make a statement.

Fiona Mactaggart: Drug treatment and testing is provided to offenders in St. Albans in a number of ways. The Drug Interventions Programme (DiP) provides a route out of crime and into treatment for drug misusing offenders, using their contact with the Criminal Justice System as an opportunity to engage then in treatment and support. In particular, the throughcare and aftercare elements of the programme are operating in St.Albans, with an enhanced arrest referral service and SWITCH, which picks up Prolific and Priority Offenders with treatment needs straight from prison.
	The DIP project is based at The Old Ambulance Headquarters, Ascots Lane, Welwyn Garden City, AL7 4HL.
	Offenders sentenced to Drug Treatment and Testing Orders (DTTOs)/Drug Rehabilitation Requirements (DRRs) (part of the new community order implemented as part of the Criminal Justice act 2003) is provided by Drugcare which provides treatment interventions, including drug testing, whilst a consultant psychiatrist assess and prescribes and delivers other medical interventions that may be required.
	For offenders with drug misuse problems not on a DRR and not assessed as a priority and prolific offender, Hertfordshire Probation Area (HPA) has contracted the provision of assessments and counselling for offenders with drug and or alcohol problems who are subject to community penalties or on licence following imprisonment with Drugcare over a number of years.
	They provide these services at HPA' offices at 62–72 Victoria Street, St. Albans AL1 3XH.

Young Offender Institutions

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many hours on average were spent per week by prisoners at each young offender institution (a) in and (b) out of cells in the last period for which figures are available.

Fiona Mactaggart: The Prison Service does not record the time prisoners spend in and out of their cells but does measure the time cells are unlocked. The following table shows the number of hours for which young offenders were unlocked, in young offender institutions across England and Wales in 2004–05.
	
		
			 Establishment name Average hours unlocked on a weekday Average hours unlocked on a weekend day 
		
		
			 Ashfield 10.5 10.5 
			 Aylesbury 8.5 6.8 
			 Brinsford 8.5 6.9 
			 Castington 8.3 7.6 
			 Coldingley 11.8 8.5 
			 Deerbolt 8.2 5.4 
			 Feltham 7.9 7.2 
			 Glen Parva 8.9 5.7 
			 Huntercombe 10.1 8.7 
			 Lancaster Farms 10.7 9.7 
			 Northallerton 8.8 6.5 
			 Onley 8.9 7.7 
			 Portland 7.6 5 
			 Reading 8 6.6 
			 Rochester 9 6 
			 Stoke Heath 10.3 10.2 
			 Swinfen Hall 10.4 6.8 
			 Thorn Cross (Open) 12.5 12.5 
			 Warren Hill 10.5 10 
			 Werrington 10.7 8 
			 Wetherby 9.8 6.5 
			 Young Offenders Estate Average 9.5 7.7

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

Acordis Factory

Shona McIsaac: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make a statement on the future of the Acordis factory in North East Lincolnshire.

Alun Michael: Since the announcement last month that Acordis was going into administration, the administrators have been working hard in co-operation with the company's management, employees, suppliers and customers to ensure its survival as a going concern.
	I understand that the administrators have received a number of expressions of interest in the company which they are currently reviewing. In the meantime, it is continuing to trade and the support of its existing customers has resulted in an increase in orders. My colleagues and I will continue to monitor the situation.

Coal Health Claims

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many (a) departmental press releases and (b) parliamentary (i) written and (ii) oral statements during 1999 referred directly to the vibration white finger and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease agreements with the Union of Democratic Mineworkers and Vendside.

Malcolm Wicks: No such press releases or parliamentary statements were made during 1999.

Coal Health Claims

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many industrial disease claims for deceased miners were submitted in 2004.

Malcolm Wicks: In 2004, the number of claims submitted for deceased miners was as follows:
	
		
			  Total deceased claims registered in 2004(18) 
		
		
			 COPD 84,514 
			 VWF 8 
		
	
	lClaims registered reflects the total of deceased claims registered, i.e. does not include claims that were registered live but have died since.
	Claim receipts are those claims that are fully registered, i.e. exclude pool of claims accepted with minimum data, awaiting further information to permit cross-referencing and duplicate checks prior to full registration.

Coal Health Claims

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many claims for deceased miners were submitted by more than one party in each year between 2001 and 2004.

Malcolm Wicks: The number of duplicate claims submitted is as follows:
	
		
			  COPD VWF 
		
		
			 2001 69 1 
			 2002 61 14 
			 2003 682 12 
			 2004 6,692 0 
			 Total 7,504 27 
		
	
	Note:
	Claims registered reflects claims that were deceased when registered. These figures do not include partially registered claims or those awaiting checks or further information.
	A process is in place to establish the correct claimant and/or solicitor in each duplicate claim to ensure that duplicate payments are not made. Claims are put on hold until this process has been completed.

Coal Health Claims

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry who the individual signatories were to the claims handling agreements of 1999 between his Department and the Union of Democratic Mineworkers and Vendside Ltd.

Malcolm Wicks: Both arrangements were signed by Nabarro Nathanson solicitors on behalf of the Department and by the General Secretary of the Union for Democratic Mineworkers (Nottingham section).

Consumer Trading and Standards Agency

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what powers the proposed Consumer Trading and Standards Agency will have to (a) inspect and (b) set targets for local authorities trading standards.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The Hampton Report recommended that a new body should be created at the centre of Government to co-ordinate work on consumer protection and trading standards.
	In line with this recommendation, DTI will shortly be issuing a consultation on the creation of the Consumer and Trading Standards Agency (CTSA).
	This consultation will inform decisions about the agency's roles and responsibilities, including in relation to Trading Standards.

Consumer Trading and Standards Agency

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the timetable is for the establishment of the proposed Consumer Trading and Standards Agency.

Gerry Sutcliffe: DTI will shortly be issuing a consultation on the establishment of the new Consumer and Trading Standards Agency, as recommended in the Hampton Report.
	Hampton recommended that the CTSA should be operational by 2009.

Consumer Trading and Standards Agency

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make a statement on the impact of the proposed Consumer Trading and Standards Agency on local authority trading standards.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The Hampton Report recommended that a new body should be created at the centre of Government to co-ordinate work on consumer protection and trading standards.
	In line with this recommendation, DTI will shortly be issuing a consultation on the creation of the Consumer and Trading Standards Agency (CTSA).
	This consultation will inform decisions about the agency's roles and responsibilities, including in relation to Trading Standards.

Export Control Organisation

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what procedures the Export Control Organisation have in place for preventing corruption on defence sales for which it gives a licence; and if he will make a statement.

Malcolm Wicks: The Export Control Organisation do not have any procedures in place for preventing corruption on defence sales for which it gives a licence, except in so far as we require licence applicants to specify the end-use, end-user and, in the case of Standard Individual Export Licences, the value of the exports.
	More generally, the Government have taken a number of steps in recent years with regard to preventing corruption and empowering law enforcers to investigate such offences. For example, by means of part 12 of the Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001 (ATCS Act), which clarifies that the existing offences of bribery apply to the bribery of foreign officials and introduces a new jurisdiction over acts of bribery committed by UK nationals or UK-based companies overseas.
	The UK has also ensured it has an adequate legal framework to implement the OECD Convention, as specifically acknowledged by the OECD Working Group on Bribery. In addition, the Government have made progress towards ratification of the UN Convention Against Corruption with the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005.
	The Government continue to make efforts elsewhere to prevent foreign bribery, for example, by stepping up its awareness-raising activities with the business community, public officials—in the UK and overseas missions—and NGOs to improve knowledge of the law and of the damage caused by international corruption. We are exploring sector-specific initiatives with business, e.g. in construction and engineering, to ensure that companies operating in these high-risk areas understand their obligations. And we continue to support codes of conduct and business principles promulgated by the likes of the International Chamber of Commerce and the World Economic Forum. Separately, ECGD has launched a consultation exercise on its anti-bribery measures (applicants for Export Credits Guarantee Department (ECGD) support must of course already comply with its anti-bribery and corruption procedures, which are amongst the most robust in use by any of the world's leading Export Credit Agencies).
	At the same time, law enforcers have streamlined the arrangements that relate to the handling of such allegations. To this end, the Serious Fraud Office now play a central part in the process and is investigating a number of cases. Law enforcers continue to keep these arrangements under review. The Government have also highlighted the provisions of part 12 of ATCS Act in the National Policing Plan, which asks forces to support SFO investigations involving these new powers and to take on those investigations not falling within the SFO's remit.

Export Control Organisation

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether the Export Control Organisation requires companies to sign no-bribery warranties before it will issue a licence.

Malcolm Wicks: The Export Control Organisation does not require companies to sign no-bribery warranties before it will issue a licence, but this in no way implies a lack of commitment by the Government to action against bribery and corruption.
	More generally, the Government have taken a number of steps in recent years with regard to preventing corruption and empowering law enforcers to investigate such offences. For example, by means of part 12 of the Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001 (ATCS Act), which clarifies that the existing offences of bribery apply to the bribery of foreign officials and introduces a new jurisdiction over acts of bribery committed by UK nationals or UK-based companies overseas.
	The UK have also ensured it has an adequate legal framework to implement the OECD Convention, as specifically acknowledged by the OECD Working Group on Bribery. In addition, the Government have made progress towards ratification of the UN Convention Against Corruption with the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005.
	The Government continues to make efforts elsewhere to prevent foreign bribery, for example, by stepping up its awareness-raising activities with the business community, public officials—in the UK and overseas missions—and NGOs to improve knowledge of the law and of the damage caused by international corruption. We are exploring sector-specific initiatives with business, e.g. in construction and engineering, to ensure that companies operating in these high-risk areas understand their obligations. And we continue to support codes of conduct and business principles promulgated by the likes of the International Chamber of Commerce and the World Economic Forum. Separately, ECGD has launched a consultation exercise on its anti-bribery measures (applicants for Export Credits Guarantee Department (ECGD) support must of course already comply with its anti-bribery and corruption procedures, which are amongst the most robust in use by any of the world's leading Export Credit Agencies).
	At the same time, law enforcers have streamlined the arrangements that relate to the handling of such allegations. To this end, the Serious Fraud Office now plays a central part in the process and is investigating a number of cases. Law enforcers continue to keep these arrangements under review. The Government have also highlighted the provisions of part 12 of ATCS Act in the National Policing Plan, which asks forces to support SFO investigations involving these new powers and to take on those investigations not falling within the SFO's remit.

Funding Allocations (Yorkshire)

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to his answer of 25 May 2005, Official Report, columns 113–44W, in Yorkshire and the Humber, what the distribution of (a) national funds and (b) EU funds were to (i) North Yorkshire, (ii)East Yorkshire, (iii) South Yorkshire and (iv) West Yorkshire in each of the last three years.

Alun Michael: The information is as follows:
	
		£
		
			  2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 
		
		
			 Objective 1
			 European Regional  Development Fund 28,610,888 66,140,394 77,692,767 
			 European Social Fund 27,372,602 29,370,428 32,980,128 
			 European Agricultural  Guidance Guarantee Fund 1,221,622 2,896,258 2,020,678 
			 Objective 2
			 North Yorkshire 1,236,638 6,401,401 12,158,697 
			 The Humber 5,622,833 20,099,226 19,879,713 
			 West Yorkshire 7,759,821 28,966,490 22,693,470 
		
	
	Note:
	1.Figures are grant only to avoid double counting of match funding as many of the projects used other national funds as match funding.
	2.European Funding works on calendar years.
	3.Objective 3 is a national programme and cannot be split into sub-regions.
	Yorkshire Forward has made available a total of £136.30 million towards economic development in Yorkshire and Humber over the last three years (excluding European Funding) Sub-regional funding split below. Yorkshire Forward works on financial years.
	
		£
		
			  2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 
		
		
			 Yorkshire Forward North  Yorkshire 1,300,000 1,800,000 2,100,000 
			 Region wide 11,100,000 12,300,000 23,900,000 
			 South Yorkshire 9,300,000 13,000,000 20,000,000 
			 The Humber 3,600,000 5,900,000 9,300,000 
			 West Yorkshire 2,500,000 9,600,000 10,600,000

Health Care Associated Infection

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what research funding has been provided in the last five years by the Medical Research Council for research into the effectiveness of bacteriophages in controlling healthcare associated infection.

Alan Johnson: During the last five years the MRC has awarded two grants, totalling £303,000, to studies relating the effect of bacteriophages on bacterial infection which are, although not specifically, relevant to controlling healthcare associated infection. These are:
	Dr. J. S. Soothill (Institute of Child Health) Investigation of the Potential of Bacteriophage for the Treatment of Staphylococcal Infection".
	Dr. J. Whyte (CAMR) Evaluation of bacteriophage for the control of P aeruginosa infection in C.F. patients using in vivo and in vitro models".
	Government do not prescribe to individual research councils what research they fund. Research excellence and importance to health are the primary considerations in MRC's funding decisions. Research proposals received by MRC undergo full peer review and assessment by one of the MRC's research boards.

Insolvency

David Kidney: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment he has made of trends in(a) personal and (b) corporate insolvencies since 1997.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Insolvency levels, both personal and corporate can and do fluctuate, influenced by a number of economic factors such as inflation rates, the availability and price of credit, employment levels and economic growth. The trend in personal insolvencies has been steadily upward since 1997 and reflects in part the extent to which access to personal credit has increased. Corporate insolvencies increased modestly between 1997 and 2002, since when they have fallen, due to a stable economic environment for business and an increasing tendency for businesses to address their financial problems at an earlier stage.

Internet Fraud

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps he is taking to protect users of internet auction and sales sites from fraud.

Alun Michael: Government Departments are working with industry organisations and law enforcement agencies through groups such as the Internet Crime Forum to tackle internet crime.
	Two of the main approaches used in dealing with fraud over the internet are prevention and education. A large amount of fraud can be prevented if organisations and individuals have proper fraud prevention measures in place. The Home Office publishes fraud prevention advice on the e-tailing mini website, which forms part of the Crime Reduction website. It helps consumers and businesses protect themselves when buying and selling over the internet.
	The Government are also involved in the development of Project Endurance, an initiative that will launch an internet security public awareness campaign later this year. The project is an alliance of public and private sector bodies, which brings together several Government Departments and law enforcement organisations with a number of high profile private sector companies. This campaign will be targeted at micro business and consumers, primarily aimed at helping them gain confidence in using the internet.
	The Consumer Protection (Distance Selling) Regulations 2000 protect consumers against payment card fraud including credit cards. The regulations apply to contracts made at a distance including online ones. The card issuer is required to reimburse consumers the full amount in the event of fraudulent use of the consumer's card.
	The Government issued guidance in December 2003 advising consumers how to guard against the risks associated with internet auction sites. Details are available from Consumer Direct Online at www.consumerdirectgov.uk/auctions.
	In 2004 the Office of Fair Trading published Tips for Safe Trading when buying from private sellers. Information is available from www.oft.gov.uk/internet+auctions.
	The Home Office website provides information about internet crime, potential scams and how not be a victim of fraud. Their website address is www.homeoffice.gov.uk/crime/fraud/preventationadvice.

Laptop Computers

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many laptop computers have been used by (a) Ministers, (b) special advisers and (c) officials in his Department in each year since 1995; how many have been (i) lost and (ii) stolen in that period; what the cost was of the use of laptops in that period; and if he will make a statement.

Alan Johnson: We do not have figures for laptops prior to 1998. Before that laptops were expensive and were not widely available within DTI. In summary:
	Ministers and Special Advisers
	The number of laptops in use by Ministers and special advisers between 2000 and May 2005 varied between five in 2000 and eight by 2005. We do not have a breakdown of these.
	DTI officials (Remote access to DTI Network)
	1998—778 laptops used as standalone machines. Six lost/stolen. No running costs.
	1999—1,325 laptops used as standalone machines. Five lost/stolen. No running costs.
	2000—1,733 laptops used as standalone machines. Six lost/stolen. No running costs.
	2001—300 laptops were in use for secure remote access at a cost of £360,000. 1587
	laptops used as standalone machines. No running costs for these. Nine lost/stolen.
	2002—900 laptops were in use for secure remote access at a cost of £1,080,000. 1688
	laptops used as standalone machines. No running costs for these. 25 lost/stolen.
	2003—1,400 laptops were in use for secure remote access at a cost of £1,430,000.
	1338 laptops used as standalone machines. No running costs for these. 27 lost/stolen.
	2004—1,550 laptops were in use for secure remote access at a cost of £1,575,000.
	Approximately 1100 Laptops used as standalone machines. No running costs for these 12 were lost/stolen.
	2005—1,500 laptops are in use for secure remote access, expected cost £1,525,000.
	Approximately 1000 laptops used standalone machines. No running costs for these. 14 have been lost/stolen so far this year.

LES Project

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to the answer of 25 May 2005, Official Report, column 111W, on Nuclear Industry, to the hon. Member for Leyton and Wanstead (Harry Cohen), if he will give an undertaking that United Kingdom public funds will not be spent on this project.

Malcolm Wicks: Westinghouse operates in the United States as a commercial business. It generates its own profits and is free, within a strategic framework set by BNFL in consultation with its shareholder, to pursue business opportunities.

Miners' Compensation

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry which claims handlers have sold miners' compensation claims to solicitors; and what action he is planning to take on this issue.

Malcolm Wicks: Although the Department is aware that claims farmers have been passing claims to solicitors, we do not keep a record of individual firms.
	Currently, there are no laws covering the activities of claims handling agents where a client willingly enters into an agreement with them. However, following SirDavid Clementi's review last year into the regulation of legal services, the Lord Chancellor has announced that legislation will be put forward that will see all those companies involved in claims processing come under a new legal services regulator. Such a regulator will have responsibility for ensuring that the services provided by all claims handling agents are of a required standard.

Nuclear Power

Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what estimate he has made of the amount of carbon that is released per unit of electricity through the lifecycle of a nuclear power station, taking into account the building of the nuclear station and the transportation of nuclear materials; and if he will make a statement.

Malcolm Wicks: We are aware of a number of non-governmental studies on this, but DTI has made no such estimate.

Nuclear Transport Ships

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many nuclear transport ships are owned by the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority; and what the specifications of each are.

Malcolm Wicks: holding answer 15 June 2005
	The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) owns two vessels the 'Atlantic Osprey' and the 'European Shearwater'. They were transferred to the NDA from BNFL on 1 April 2005 and are now registered in the NDA's name. Their specifications and certification are in accordance with those specified in the International Maritime Organisations' (IMO) International Code for the Safe Carriage of Packaged Irradiated Nuclear Fuel, Plutonium, and High Level Radioactive Wastes on Board Ships (INF Code). Details on the INF Code can be found at www.imo.org/home.asp. Information relating to the security systems in place on such vessels are confidential for security reasons.

Parking Charges (Airports)

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will invite the Competition Commission to investigate the level of car parking charges in force at airports in the UK.

Gerry Sutcliffe: At the five-yearly reviews conducted by the Competition Commission of the three BAA London airports and Manchester airport, the Commission is able to examine all activities conducted by the airports, including car parking. Where it concludes that the airport has been acting against the public interest in any of these activities the Commission can ask the CAA to impose a remedy in the form of a condition on the airport. The Competition Commission last reviewed the four airports during 2002. It did not make any public interest findings in relation to car parking at any of the airports but did indicate that car parking at Manchester airport was an issue to which it might wish to return at the next review.

Plutonium Consignments

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when British Nuclear Fuels informed his Department that it planned to send consignments of plutonium to (a) French MOX plutonium nuclear fuel manufacturers Cogema and (b) Belgian MOX manufacturers Belgonucleaire; what details and when, of the proposed security arrangements for these plutonium transports were made available to (i) his Department and (ii) the Office of Civil Nuclear Security; when this was made available; and who will be responsible for funding for the implementation of the security arrangements for these shipments.

Malcolm Wicks: holding answer 15 June 2005
	Iunderstand that BNFL is considering the transport of plutonium to France and Belgium as one of a number of options to repay loans of plutonium made to BNFL by companies in these countries. No formal plans have been submitted to the Department.
	Any such shipment will be carried out in accordance with the Nuclear Industries Security Regulations 2003 (NISR), which are administered and enforced by the DTFs Office for Civil Nuclear Security (OCNS). A key requirement of the NISR is that a Transport Security Plan is submitted to OCNS for approval. All details of this plan, including dates, are confidential and it is not Government policy to release such information. OCNS will not approve the plan until it is satisfied that all measures are in place and are adequately robust to counter any credible threat. The responsibility for any costs of security arrangements falls onto BNFL.

Public Money Use Guidance

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether he has issued guidance to regional development agencies concerning their use of public money.

Alun Michael: holding answer 15 June 2005
	Each of the eight regional development agencies outside London is issued with a management statement and financial memorandum under Section 27 of the Regional Development Agencies Act 1998; the London Development Agency receives a 'Grant offer letter', which serves the same purposes. These documents set out the Agency's powers to offer financial assistance and identify various Treasury guidance concerning the use of public money.

RDAs

David Kidney: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what budget was available to each regional development agency in England for each of the last three financial years; how much each spent on (a) running costs and (b) management costs in each year; and what proportion of the budget each represented in each year.

Alun Michael: For financial years 2002–03 and 2003–04, information for each Regional Development Agency (RDA) in England is detailed as follows. The Department does not monitor the RDAs' spend in terms of running costs and management costs. However, these costs, included as shown, are based on certain assumptions (see footnote). Figures in bracket represent these categories as percentage of each RDA's net budget allocation for that year.
	
		£000
		
			  Budget Running costs(18) Management costs(18) 
			  2002–03 2003–04 2002–03 2003–04 2002–03 2003–04 
		
		
			 Advantage West Midlands 205,156 252,506 9,159(4.5) 11,908(4.7) 6,457(3.1) 7,259(2.9) 
			 East of England Development Agency 89,413 86,799 5,435(6.1) 5,810(6.7) 3,664(4.1) 4,037(4.7) 
			 East Midlands Development Agency 102,892 130,127 5,569(5.4) 6,851(5.3) 5,611(5.5) 6,027(4.6) 
			 London Development Agency 296,059 317,668 8,613(2.9) 12,980(4.1) 11,198(3.8) 13,291(4.2) 
			 North West Development Agency 274,855 338,595 10,784(3.9) 14,128(4.2) 33,347(12.1) 45,775(13.5) 
			 One North East 193,828 226,345 9,186(4.7) 12,288(5.4) 9,689(5.0) 9,736(4.3) 
			 South East England Development Agency 115,034 140,718 8,678(7.5) 12,629(9.0) 6,473(3.3) 6,645(4.7) 
			 South West of England Regional  Development Agency 101,958 104,856 7,662 (7.5) 9,541 (9.1) 8,132 (8.0) 8,378 (8.0) 
			 Yorkshire Forward 210,274 267,050 10,004(4.8) 12,093(4.5) 6,604(3.1) 7,317(2.7) 
		
	
	(18)Running costs and managements costs equates to staff costs" and other administration costs" respectively, as defined in the RDAs' Audited Accounts for 2003–04
	Similar information for the financial year 2004–05 is not yet available until the RDAs' annual accounts have been audited. However, indicative estimates, by applying the percentages in 2003–04 under these categories to the RDAs' net budget allocations for 2004–05, are given as follows. These figures will need to be revised after the RDAs' annual accounts have been audited and laid before Parliament in July 2005.
	
		£000
		
			  Budget Indicative estimates 
			  2004–05 Running costs Management costs 
		
		
			 Advantage West Midlands 237,314 11,154 6,882 
			 East of England Development Agency 92,177 6,176 4,332 
			 East Midlands Development Agency 133,276 7,064 6,131 
			 London Development Agency 327,642 13,433 13,761 
			 North West Development Agency 366,968 15,413 49,541 
			 One North East 228,651 12,347 9,832 
			 South East England Development Agency 129,825 11,684 6,102 
			 South West of England Regional Development Agency 115,758 10,534 9,261 
			 Yorkshire Forward 290,497 13,072 7,843

Royal Mail

Peter Law: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make a statement on the future of the Royal Mail.

Barry Gardiner: The Government want to see a successful Royal Mail providing excellent services to its customers. The Government are committed to reviewing the impact on Royal Mail of market liberalisation on Royal Mail, which allows alternative carriers to offer postal services in competition with Royal Mail. We are currently working on the details of the review and hope to announce these shortly.

Solar Grants Programme

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make a statement on the future of the Solar Grants Programme operated by the Energy Savings Trust; how much funding remains to be allocated from the programme; how many applications are outstanding; and if he will make a statement.

Malcolm Wicks: The PV Major Demonstration programme has been extended to run until March 2006. A low carbon buildings programme will supersede both this and the Clear Skies programme. A consultation document for the new programme will be released on 23 June 2005.
	Of a total of approximately 1250 stream one applications there are currently 481 that have been allocated grant funding from the existing budget and are yet to be completed. Of the 200 stream two approved projects there are 98 yet to be completed.
	There are a further 30 stream two projects to be assessed at the next independent selection panel meeting in July 2005.
	There are still currently £5.3 million unallocated under the current budget.

Television Channel Grants

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will list (a) how many and (b) which regional development agencies have given grants towards promoting, setting up or sustaining a television channel or channels; and whether he was consulted about such use of public money.

Alun Michael: holding answer 15 June 2005
	I understand that two of England's regional development agencies have given grants towards promoting or setting up TV channels. The London Development Agency is investing a total of £630,000 in London TV as part of a three-year grant agreement with Visit London. Along with another partner, Yorkshire Forward has invested £2.9 million over three years in a new digital satellite television channel called Propellor to promote the region's film and television talents.
	The regional development agencies are required to seek the consent of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State to give financial assistance outside their delegated authority. The LDA's grant to London TV was considered as part of the grant to Visit London and the agency was granted consent. Yorkshire Forward's investment in Propellor was within the agency's delegated authority.

Wassenaar Arrangement

Robert Key: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what policy changes have been made in the past year to the UK's application of the Wassenaar Arrangement; and if he will make a statement.

Malcolm Wicks: No policy changes have been made in the past year to the UK's application of commitments made within the Wassenaar Arrangement. The Government continues to fully support the export control activities and principles of the Wassenaar Arrangement.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Benefits (Derbyshire)

Judy Mallaber: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many residents in (a) Amber Valley and (b) Derbyshire are in receipt of (i) incapacity benefit and (ii) industrial injury benefit.

Anne McGuire: The information is in the tables.
	
		Incapacity benefit (IB) and severe disability allowance (SDA) claimants in areas shown as at February 2005
		
			  Amber Valley Derbyshire 
		
		
			 IB/SDA 4,600 43,600 
			 IB 4,000 38,600 
			 SDA 500 5,000 
		
	
	Notes:
	1.Figures have been rounded to the nearest hundred and may not sum due to rounding.
	2.IB figures include credit-only cases.
	3.Derbyshire figures are the total for the 10 parliamentary constituencies within the county of Derbyshire and Derby unitary authority.
	Source:
	Information Directorate, 5 per cent. sample.
	
		Industrial injuries disablement benefit (IIDB), reduced earnings allowance (REA) and retirement allowance (RA) recipients in areas shown as at 30 September 2004
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 Amber Valley 995 
			 Derbyshire 9,720 
		
	
	Notes:
	1.Figures have been rounded to the nearest 5 to ensure anonymity.
	2.A recipient may be in receipt of IIDB or REA/RA or both.
	3.Derbyshire figures are the total for the 10 parliamentary constituencies within the county of Derbyshire and Derby unitary authority.
	Source:
	Industrial Injuries Computer System, 100 per cent. count.

Child Support Agency

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what contingency plans have been made for the transfer of child support functions to the HM Revenue and Customs.

James Plaskitt: We have no such plans.

Child Support Agency

David Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when Stephen Brice, reference 1040238581, will have his payments to the Child Support Agency calculated under the new system.

James Plaskitt: Information about individual cases is confidential and not disclosed.

Incapacity Benefit

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what his estimate is of the total number of UK citizens claiming incapacity related benefits for each year since 1978–79; and if he will make a statement.

Anne McGuire: holding answer 25 May 2005
	Information is not available in the format requested.
	As a result of numerous changes to the benefits system the information on incapacity related benefits requested is not directly comparable over the whole period.
	Incapacity related benefits between 1978 and 1983 included sickness benefit and the incapacity benefits of the time: invalidity benefit; non-contributory invalidity pension and housewives non-contributory invalidity pension.
	In 1983, Statutory Sick Pay, paid by employers, was introduced. This had the effect of removing a large number of claimants from sickness benefit.
	Between 1984 and April 1995 incapacity related benefits included sickness benefit and the incapacity benefits of the time: invalidity benefit and severe disablement allowance.
	Since 13 April 1995, sickness benefit and invalidity benefit were replaced by incapacity benefit. From that date incapacity related benefits have consisted entirely of the incapacity benefits: incapacity benefit itself plus severe disablement allowance.
	The available information is in the tables.
	
		Incapacity related benefits claimants in Great Britain on the last day of the Department's statistical year (1978–83)
		
			  Incapacity benefits(19) Sickness benefit 
		
		
			 1978 769,900 471,900 
			 1979 832,100 430,400 
			 1980 852,400 384,000 
			 1981 872,800 352,600 
			 1982 951,800 393,200 
			 1983 1,008,400 338,400 
		
	
	(19)Incapacity benefits were invalidity benefit, non-contributory invalidity pension, housewives non-contributory invalidity pension and sickness benefits credits-only cases, until 1983.
	Notes:
	1.Figures are rounded to the nearest hundred.
	2.Figures include some people over pension age.
	Source:
	Information Directorate 1 per cent. Sample
	
		Incapacity related benefits claimants in Great Britain on the last day of the Department's statistical year (1984–95)
		
			  Incapacity benefits(20) Sickness benefit 
		
		
			 1984 1,073,600 190,300 
			 1985 1,146,700 179,700 
			 1986 1,219,500 178,700 
			 1987 1,305,800 109,600 
			 1988 1,421,200 117,500 
			 1989 1,557,900 109,200 
			 1990 1,699,500 103,400 
			 1991 1,862,400 109,600 
			 1992 2,061,300 138,400 
			 1993 2,283,100 147,000 
			 1994 2,451,300 127,400 
			 1995 (April) 2,627,900 127,200 
		
	
	(20)Incapacity benefits were invalidity benefit, severe disablement allowance and sickness benefits credits-only cases, up to April 1995.
	Notes:
	1.Figures are rounded to the nearest hundred.
	2.Figures include some people over pension age.
	Source:
	Information Directorate 1 per cent. Sample
	
		Incapacity related benefits claimants in Great Britainat the quarter shown (1995–2004)
		
			 As at November: Incapacity benefits(21) 
		
		
			 1995 2,767,500 
			 1996 2,748,100 
			 1997 2,738,800 
			 1998 2,671,300 
			 1999 2,637,500 
			 2000 2,677,900 
			 2001 2,705,100 
			 2002 2,710,100 
			 2003 2,720,500 
			 2004 2,696,500 
		
	
	(21)Incapacity benefits are incapacity benefit, incapacity benefit credits-only and severe disablement allowance since November 1995.
	Notes:
	1.Figures are rounded to the nearest hundred
	2.Figures include some people over pension age.
	Source:
	Information Directorate 5 per cent. sample

Incapacity Benefit

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many recipients of incapacity benefit (a) returned to work, (b) died and (c) passed the state pension age in each quarter since 1997; and what proportion of all incapacity benefit claimants each represent;
	(2)  what the proportion of terminations of entitlement to incapacity benefit has been as a result of failing the personal capacity assessment or all work test in each of the last eight years.

Anne McGuire: The numbers leaving incapacity benefits and returning to work are not recorded in this format. An estimate of the proportion of incapacity benefit leavers returning to employment can be obtained from the annual Destination of Benefit Leavers Survey (DWP In-House Research Report no. 132), which is available in the Library. The latest published figures, for 2004 benefit leavers, show that 49 per cent. of incapacity benefit leavers surveyed had returned to work of 16 hours or more per week.
	The available information is in the table.
	
		Incapacity benefit and severe disability allowance terminations each quarter by reason and proportion.
		
			  All terminations Death of claimant Percentage Award of RP Percentage Failed PCA Percentage 
		
		
			 February 1997 244,000 8,300 3.41 5,600 2.28 35,500 14.54 
			 May 1997 257,000 6,900 2.68 15,200 5.90 38,400 14.95 
			 August 1997 241,800 7,500 3.10 17,800 7.34 35,100 14.51 
			 November 1997 245,200 8,300 3.39 17,400 7.09 36,300 14.82 
			 February 1998 230,400 8,100 3.52 18,700 8.13 37,000 16.04 
			 May 1998 238,500 7,800 3.27 21,200 8.88 34,400 14.44 
			 August 1998 215,800 6,500 3.02 20,700 9.57 35,300 16.37 
			 November 1998 242,400 7,400 3.05 19,200 7.91 n/a n/a 
			 February 1999 193,700 8,100 4.20 19,400 10.02 31,900 16.46 
			 May 1999 214,400 6,900 3.24 23,300 10.85 30,300 14.13 
			 August 1999 217,400 7,500 3.43 23,500 10.79 28,200 12.96 
			 November 1999 214,400 7,100 3.32 22,000 10.25 28,300 13.18 
			 February 2000 213,300 8,800 4.11 22,900 10.73 27,600 12.92 
			 May 2000 193,400 6,800 3.52 17,000 8.79 24,600 12.74 
			 August 2000 174,800 6,300 3.59 9,200 5.26 22,900 13.10 
			 November 2000 180,400 7,000 3.88 8,400 4.67 20,300 11.23 
			 February 2001 183,400 8,100 4.44 8,900 4.84 18,700 10.20 
			 May 2001 187,300 7,300 3.89 11,300 6.01 20,200 10.78 
			 August 2001 175,200 6,700 3.80 10,200 5.83 21,600 12.34 
			 November 2001 188,400 7,200 3.82 10,000 5.31 26,400 14.01 
			 February 2002 176,200 7,500 4.24 11,200 6.33 23,900 13.56 
			 May 2002 181,100 6,200 3.41 12,100 6.67 25,700 14.21 
			 August 2002 176,400 6,500 3.68 12,500 7.11 22,800 12.92 
			 November 2002 185,900 7,600 4.09 11,100 5.95 27,000 14.51 
			 February 2003 170,600 7,300 4.29 13,400 7.88 22,900 13.45 
			 May 2003 166,200 6,500 3.94 15,500 9.32 24,400 14.71 
			 August 2003 183,200 6,800 3.69 9,200 5.04 24,600 13.44 
			 November 2003 187,200 7,100 3.78 6,000 3.23 24,700 13.22 
			 February 2004 173,200 8,300 4.77 12,500 7.24 23,500 13.55 
			 May 2004 175,600 6,600 3.78 16,300 9.27 27,100 15.41 
			 August 2004 180,600 7,100 3.92 16,700 9.27 25,600 14.16 
			 November 2004 128,900 6,700 5.21 14,200 11.01 30,100 23.36 
		
	
	Notes:
	1.Figures are rounded to the nearest hundred. Totals may not sum due to rounding.
	2.n/a" means not available. This is because of changes to the recording system, terminations due to the Personal Capability Assessment for this quarter are unreliable and are included in an 'Other reasons' category.
	3.Figures have been updated to include late notified terminations, including terminations for retirement pension.
	4.Figures for the latest quarter do not include any late notifications and are subject to major changes in future quarters. For illustration purposes, total terminations for August 2003 increased by 34 per cent. in the year following their initial release.
	Source:
	Information Directorate, 5 per cent. samples.

Incapacity Benefit

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what proportion of incapacity benefit claims were made from people previously registered as unemployed in each year between 1990–91 and 2005–06; and if he will make a statement.

Anne McGuire: The available information is in the table.
	
		Proportion of incapacity benefit (IB) and severe disability allowance (SDA) commencements previously receiving jobseeker's allowance (JSA)
		
			 Year of commencement to IB/SDA All IB/SDA commencements Those who had claimed JSA within previous 90 days Proportion of IB/SDA commencements who previously claimed JSA (percentage) 
		
		
			 1 September 1995–31 August 1996 1,012,100 307,700 30.4 
			 1 September 1996–31 August 1997 997,600 312,100 31.3 
			 1 September 1997–31 August 1998 869,400 247,700 28.5 
			 1 September 1998–31 August 1999 828,900 242,200 29.2 
			 1 September 1999–31 August 2000 799,700 236,100 29.5 
			 1 September 2000–31 August 2001 775,200 227,500 29.3 
			 1 September 2001–31 August 2002 728,200 209,200 28.7 
			 1 September 2002–31 August 2003 715,600 208,300 29.1 
			 1 September 2003–31 August 2004 684,700 189,700 29.2 
		
	
	Notes:
	1.Figures are rounded to the nearest hundred. Percentages are rounded to the nearest 0.1 per cent.
	2.Commencement figures are not available prior to 1995.
	3.Data are not yet available for final commencements post-August 2004.
	4.'Claimed JSA within previous 90 days' also includes a small number of IB/SDA claims where the computer system JSA end date was up to seven days after the IB/SDA start date. This category also includes cases who may have claimed another benefit (eg income support) between JSA and IB/SDA.
	Source:
	Information Directorate, 5 per cent. terminations dataset.

Occupational Pensions Regulatory Agency

Nigel Waterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many staff were employed by the Occupational Pensions Regulatory Agency in each of the last five years of its existence, broken down by grade; how many of the staff employed by the agency on 5 April are now employed by the Pensions Regulator, broken down by grade; and how many new staff have been employed by the Pensions Regulator since 6 April, broken down by grade.

Stephen Timms: The information requested is contained in the following tables. The information has been supplied by the Pensions Regulator.
	
		Staff employed by OPRA in each of the last five years of its existence (by grade)(22)
		
			 Grade 31 March 2001 31 March 2002 31 March 2003 31 March 2004 31 March 2005 
		
		
			 1 7 8 6 5 3 
			 2 39 51 43 37 31 
			 3 10 11 12 9 0 
			 4 6 4 5 8 18 
			 5 14 19 26 31 41 
			 6 1 0 0 0 0 
			 7 3 7 9 4 0 
			 8 4 6 8 13 19 
			 9 31 34 37 51 48 
			 10 9 11 10 11 0 
			 11 8 8 7 11 35 
			 12 6 9 14 12 14 
			 13 9 10 11 8 1 
			 14 3 3 3 7 15 
			 15 1 1 2 1 2 
			 16 2 2 3 0 0 
			 17 1 1 1 0 0 
			 Directors 0 0 0 5 5 
			 CEO 1 1 1 1 1 
			 Chairman 1 1 1 1 1 
			 Total Brighton 156 787 199 215 234 
			   
			 AA 23 21 18 14 5 
			 AO 31 31 28 25 18 
			 EO 7 6 9 7 7 
			 HEO 3 4 4 5 4 
			 SEO 1 1 1 1 1 
			 Total Newcastle 65 63 60 52 35 
			   
			 Grand total 221 250 259 267 269 
		
	
	(22)Grade 1 is the lowest
	
		Staff employed on 5 April 2005 who are now employed by the Pensions Regulator
		
			 Grade Staff 
		
		
			 1 2 
			 2 29 
			 3 0 
			 4 18 
			 5 36 
			 6 0 
			 7 0 
			 8 18 
			 9 47 
			 10 0 
			 11 30 
			 12 13 
			 13 1 
			 14 14 
			 15 2 
			 16 0 
			 17 0 
			 Directors 5 
			 CEO 1 
			 Chairman 1 
			 Total 217 
		
	
	
		New staff employed by the Pensions Regulator (6 April 2005 to 10 June 2005)
		
			 Grade Staff 
		
		
			 1 0 
			 2 1 
			 3 0 
			 4 1 
			 5 0 
			 6 0 
			 7 0 
			 8 1 
			 9 0 
			 10 0 
			 11 0 
			 12 1 
			 13 0 
			 14 0 
			 15 0 
			 16 0 
			 17 0 
			 Directors 0 
			 Executives 2 
			 CEO 0 
			 Chairman 0 
			 Total 6

Unemployment/Incapacity

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what his estimate is of the differential between the value of incapacity benefit and its predecessor benefits and unemployment benefit in each year between1979–80 and 2005–06; and if he will make a statement.

Anne McGuire: The information is in the tables.
	
		Nominal rates of invalidity benefit (IVB) and unemployment benefit (UB)/jobseeker's allowance (JSA) for single claimants between 1979 and 1994 -- £ per week
		
			  IVB (1) UB/JSA (2) Difference (1)-(2) 
		
		
			 November 1979 23.30 18.50 4.80 
			 November 1980 26.00 20.65 5.35 
			 November 1981 28.35 22.50 5.85 
			 November 1982 31.45 25.00 6.45 
			 November 1983 32.60 27.05 5.55 
			 November 1984 34.25 28.45 5.80 
			 November 1985 38.30 30.45 7.85 
			 July 1986 38.70 30.80 7.90 
			 April 1987 39.50 31.45 8.05 
			 April 1988 41.15 32.75 8.40 
			 April 1989 43.60 34.70 8.90 
			 April 1990 46.90 37.35 9.55 
			 April 1991 52.00 41.40 10.60 
			 April 1992 54.15 43.10 11.05 
			 April 1993 56.10 44.65 11.45 
			 April 1994 57.60 45.45 12.15 
		
	
	Source:
	Annual Abstract of Statistics
	
		Nominal rates of incapacity benefit short term lower (IBSTL), incapacity benefit short term higher (IBSTH), incapacity benefit long term (IBLT) and unemployment benefit (UB)/jobseeker's allowance (JSA) for single claimants between 1995 and 2005 -- £ per week
		
			  Difference 
			  IBSTL (3) IBSTH (4) IBLT (5) UB/JSA (6) (3)-(6) (4)-(6) (5)-(6) 
		
		
			 April
			 1995 44.40 52.50 58.85 46.45 -2.05 6.05 12.40 
			 1996 46.15 54.55 61.15 48.25 -2.10 6.30 12.90 
			 1997 47.10 55.70 62.45 49.15 -2.05 6.55 13.30 
			 1998 48.80 57.70 64.70 50.35 -1.55 7.35 14.35 
			 1999 50.35 59.55 66.75 51.40 -1.05 8.15 15.35 
			 2000 50.90 60.20 67.50 52.20 -1.30 8.00 15.30 
			 2001 52.60 62.20 69.75 53.05 -0.45 9.15 16.70 
			 2002 53.50 63.25 70.95 53.95 -0.45 9.30 17.00 
			 2003 54.40 64.35 72.15 54.65 -0.25 9.70 17.50 
			 2004 55.90 66.15 74.15 55.65 0.25 10.50 18.50 
			 2005 57.65 68.20 76.45 56.20 1.45 12.00 20.25 
		
	
	Source:
	Annual Abstract of Statistics

DEFENCE

Afghanistan

Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence which units are designated by his Department to be deployed to Afghanistan during (a) 2005 and (b) 2006.

Adam Ingram: The United Kingdom will deploy the 1stBattalion The Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment to Afghanistan in October 2005, to replace the 2nd Battalion The Royal Gurkha Rifles, as our principal contribution to the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Kabul and Northern Afghanistan.
	In May 2006, the Headquarters Group of the Allied Rapid Reaction Corps (ARRC) will deploy to Kabul as the Headquarters of the ISAF. We are currently assessing the nature and scale of our future commitment in Afghanistan.

Aircraft Carriers

Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what (a) discussions and (b) meetings officials in his Department have had with their counterparts in France about possible collaboration on the (i) acquisition and (ii) construction of aircraft carriers; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what discussions have taken place with French defence officials regarding the adoption by France of the UK's aircraft carrier design; and how much he expects France to pay for the right to use the UK design.

Adam Ingram: Ministry of Defence officials have met their French counterparts on several occasions to discuss what the possibilities might be for co-operation between our two countries in the procurement of our respective next generation aircraft carriers. It is too soon to say what, if any, co-operation there will be as both countries believe that areas of beneficial co-operation are best determined by our respective industries. Ongoing studies by industry will determine the optimum and most cost-effective way in which any co-operative options can be implemented. It would be inappropriate to speculate on what industry's proposals may consist of, but Governments will take a view on their proposals, when available, later this year.

Defence Logistics Organisation

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the expected annual savings are from the integration of the Medical Supplies Agency and the Warship Supply Agency into the Defence Logistics Organisation.

Adam Ingram: The Medical Supplies Agency (MSA) transferred to the Defence Logistics Organisation (DLO) from the Surgeon General's Department on 1 April 2002. It changed from a Defence Agency to the Medical Supplies Integrated Project Team on 1 April 2005. The estimated savings in the following table are derived from the overall MSA Transformation Programme and not specifically from any change of status.
	
		
			  £ million 
		
		
			 2005–06 13.9 
			 2006–07 15.7 
			 2007–08 15.9 
			 2008–09 16.2 
		
	
	The Warship Support Agency (WSA) was disestablished in April 2005 as part of the wider Defence Logistics Organisation Restructuring Programme, to allow the full benefits from the overall restructuring process and organisational changes to be realised. Cost savings directly attributable to the change in the WSA's status alone are limited. These relate to the cost of administering the agency and are an estimated £250,000 per annum.

Falkland Islands

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what average periods of service have been performed by members of the armed forces in the Falklands since 1981.

Adam Ingram: Deployment tour lengths in the Falkland Islands vary with the service involved. For the Royal Navy and Army, tours are usually of six months duration. RAF officer tours are for either six months or four months duration. For RAF other ranks tours are usually four months.
	There are a number of continuity postings on the Falkland Islands which may be accompanied and are usually of one year's duration, although this tour length can be extended for service reasons.

Iraq

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make representations to his United States counterpart to investigate claims made by former US Marine Jimmy Massey that US coalition forces in Iraq shot dead unarmed Iraqi civilians at roadblocks in Iraq; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: The activity of American coalition forces is a matter for the US Authorities. Our coalition partners are fully aware of their obligations under international law and have procedures in place to address any alleged contraventions.

Iraq

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many United Kingdom military personnel were in Iraq on (a) 1 January 2004 and (b) 1 January 2005; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: On 1 January 2004 there were some 7,600 UK Service personnel serving in Iraq. On 1 January 2005, the figure was approximately 8,000. Numbers fluctuated throughout the year for a variety of reasons, the primary factor being the deployment of a Divisional Armoured Reserve (initially the One Black Watch Battlegroup) in June 2004.

Nuclear Deterrent

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when a decision will be taken on the replacement of Trident; and if he will make a statement.

John Reid: I have nothing to add to the answer that Igave on 7 June 2005, Official Report, column 466W to the hon. Member for New Forest, East (Dr. Lewis).

Service Personnel (Remuneration)

Michael Ancram: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many members of the (a) Royal Navy, (b) British Army and (c) Royal Air Force have resigned citing poor financial remuneration as their principal reason for leaving since 2003.

Don Touhig: Exit Surveys are conducted within the Naval Services and RAF but only a relatively small proportion of those choosing to leave respond. Therefore, the results cannot be seen as representative of their Services as a whole.
	Within the Naval Service only the Fleet organisation (some 67 per cent. of total Naval Service) run an Exit Survey. Of the 759 personnel who did respond between October 2003 and July 2004,15 per cent. of Royal Naval and 46 per cent. of the Royal Marines personnel quoted pay as their reason for leaving.
	In the RAF in 2002–03, of the 184 Officers who responded, pay and remuneration" issues ranked sixth in importance out of eight groups of issues for reasons for leaving, with 16 per cent. of respondents ranking them among their top three reasons for leaving. Among airmen and women for the same period, dissatisfaction with pay" was rated as an important or very important reason for leaving by 39 per cent. of the 723 personnel who responded, placing it 57th factor in the overall list of importance. Salary outside the RAF", however, was rated as important or very important by 62 per cent., placing it 16 overall.
	In 2003–04, the Officers' survey respondents were asked to select their top five reasons for leaving the RAF. Of the 152 respondents replying to this question, two per cent. rated basic pay" as one of their top five reasons for leaving, ranking it 80th in a list of 98 factors. In the same period, of the 543 Airmen and women who responded to this question, 9 per cent. rated basic pay" among their top five reasons for leaving, ranking it 18th out of a list of 102 factors.
	The Army do not currently run an Exit Survey, however, the possibility of doing so is being considered and it appears likely that they will implement such a survey in the future.

HEALTH

Adult Abuse

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress has been made on the establishment of a national data collection system on adult abuse; and if she will make a statement.

Liam Byrne: The Department is funding Action on Elder Abuse to carry out a two-year project which will contribute to the development of a national data collection system on adult abuse. A report of findings from the first year of the project will be placed in the Library shortly.

Alcohol Harm Reduction Strategies

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment she has made of the implementation of local alcohol harm reduction strategies.

Caroline Flint: The Department wrote to all primary care trusts in February 2005 to encourage them to adopt local alcohol harm reduction strategies, but no assessment has been made of their implementation as yet. As announced in the Choosing Health White Paper, we are developing a programme of improvements for alcohol treatment services to be launched this autumn.

Alcohol-related Problems

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people under the age of 18 were admitted to hospital for alcohol related problems in 2004–05.

Caroline Flint: The latest data set that is available for people under the age of 18 admitted to hospital for alcohol related problems is for 2003–04. This is shown in the table.
	
		Counts of finished admission episodes where there was a primary diagnosis code or cause code for selected alcohol related diseases. Age at admission between 0–18 years. national health service hospitals, England 2003–04
		
			 Primary diagnosis Number 
		
		
			 F10 Mental and behavioural disorders due to use of alcohol 3,934 
			 K70 Alcoholic liver disease 1 
			 T51 Toxic effect of alcohol 712 
			 Cause code  
			 X45 Accidental poisoning by and exposure to alcohol 396 
		
	
	Notes:
	1.A finished admission episode is the first period of in-patient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. Please note that admissions do not represent the number of in-patients, as a person may have more than one admission within the year.
	2.The primary diagnosis is the first of up to 14 (seven prior to 2002–03) diagnosis fields in the hospital episode statistics (HES) data set and provides the main reason why the patient was in hospital.
	3.The cause code is a supplementary code that indicates the nature of any external cause of injury, poisoning or other adverse effects.
	4.Figures have not been adjusted for shortfalls in data (that is, the data are ungrossed).
	Source:
	Hospital episode statistics, Health and Social Care Information Centre.

Alliance Medical Ltd.

Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what representations she has received from County Durham and Tees Valley Strategic Health Authority about the role of Alliance Medical in the NHS; and if she will make a statement.

Liam Byrne: holding answer 6 June 2005
	County Durham and Tees Valley Strategic Health Authority (SHA) contacted the Department in early June following an Alliance Medical Ltd. (AML) site visit in April 2005. The Department is currently discussing the issues raised with AML and the SHA.

Alzheimer's and Dementia

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how her Department plans to ensure that quality affordable medicines will be available to people with (a) Alzheimer's and (b) dementia.

Liam Byrne: holding answer 15 June 2005
	The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) is currently reviewing its 2001 appraisal of Alzheimer's drugs. Until NICE completes this review and issues new guidance, the 2001 guidance remains extant and those using the drugs in question will continue to do so.
	NICE is also pursuing an appraisal of non-Alzheimer pharmaceutical treatments. This appraisal has been halted while NICE awaits further information on drug licensing and marketing. NICE will continue to monitor the progress of marketing authorisation on interventions for non-Alzheimer's dementia and will contact consultees and commentators at such time as may be appropriate to resume appraisal.
	NICE is also producing a comprehensive guideline on the treatment and care of those with dementia. This will take account of the appraisals being done on drug treatments for dementia. A draft of the guideline will be consulted on in 2006.

Anaesthetic Awareness

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what procedures are used to encourage patients to report anaesthetic awareness;
	(2)  how many cases of anaesthetic awareness have been recorded in England in each year since 1997;
	(3)  what procedures are used in the NHS to detect anaesthetic awareness; and what routine checks are made in hospitals to prevent its incidence.

Jane Kennedy: There are currently no procedures to encourage specific reporting of anaesthetic awareness by patients and the Department does not routinely collect information about the number of cases.
	However, the National Patient Safety Agency (NPSA) that we established in July 2001 to improve the safety of national health service patient care by promoting an open and fair culture has in place a national reporting and learning system for adverse events across the NHS. The NPSA is about to start a pilot to encourage patients to report all patient safety incidents, including those involving anaesthetic awareness.
	The NPSA has also undertaken a review of the anaesthetic process. This involved taking a standard patient journey" and working through the whole process, identifying and analysing the risks. The NPSA is now in the process of identifying and prioritising areas for action and is being assisted in its work by a clinical speciality adviser (CSA) in anaesthetics and an anaesthetic reference group.
	The most important contribution to patient safety in this area is the continuous presence of a highly trained and skilled anaesthetist who has the benefit of modern equipment to deliver and monitor the patient's condition. The Association of Anaesthetists of Great Britain and Ireland, which represents more than 9,000 anaesthetists, has issued Minimum Standards for Monitoring" in recognition of the importance of monitoring the patient throughout an anaesthetic. The Association also launched its revised guidelines, Checking Anaesthetic Equipment", in 2004. The guidelines were developed jointly with the Royal College of Anaesthetists and their application by all anaesthetic staff will help to improve patient safety.

Antibiotics

John Hemming: To ask the Secretary of State for Health on what the £12 million that has been made available for monitoring the use of antibiotics is being spent.

Jane Kennedy: As part of the clinical pharmacist initiative, we are providing £12 million over three years to support hospital clinical pharmacists in monitoring the use of antibiotics in relation to local policies. The funding is given to acute trusts via primary care trusts and the acute trusts decide how to use the money. This is frequently used to support a hospital clinical pharmacist.

Antimicrobial Strategy and Action Plan

John Hemming: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans the Department has to update the June 2000 Antimicrobial Strategy and Action Plan.

Jane Kennedy: We do not plan to revise the United Kingdom Antimicrobial Strategy and Action Plan" asthe aims and objectives are being taken forward by the Specialist Advisory Committee on Antimicrobial Resistance.

Arm's Length Bodies

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the total budget for arm's-length bodies contained within the Department's review of arm's length bodies is for 2005–06; and what this figure was in (a) 2004–05 and (b) 2003–04.

Jane Kennedy: The recurrent operating costs for the Department's arm's length bodies (ALBs) for the years in question are shown in the table.
	
		
			  £ million 
		
		
			 2003–04 1,842 
			 2004–05 2,063 
			 2005–06 1,780 
		
	
	Notes:
	1.2003–04 costs include 2004–05 costs of the Commission for Healthcare Audit and Inspection and the Commission for Social Care Inspection since these bodies were in start-up mode in 2003–04.
	2.2004–05 costs increased because of taking on of new services, new ALBs and ALBs coming fully on stream.
	3.2005–06 costs do not include £50 million of non-recurrent costs.

Arrhythmia

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cases of arrhythmia were treated by (a) the Acute Trust and (b) community trusts, including GP services, in Gloucestershire in the last year for which figures are available.

Liam Byrne: Information on numbers of arrhythmia cases treated is collected centrally by trust, but not for general practitioner services. Figures for community trusts in Gloucestershire are between one and five and due to reasons of confidentiality have been suppressed. The number of cases of arrhythmia that were treated at Gloucestershire hospitals national health service trust in 2003–04 are shown in the table.
	
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 Finished consultant episodes with a primary diagnosis of arrhythmia, which indicates the patient was attending specifically for treatment of their arrhythmia 93 
			 Finished consultant episodes with an arrhythmia diagnosis code recorded in any of the diagnosis fields—arrhythmia codes might occur in secondary fields if they are being treated as part of an overall cardiology problem 261 
		
	
	Notes:
	1.A finished consultant episode (FCE) is defined as a period of admitted patient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. Please note that the figures do not represent the number of patients, as a person may have more than one episode of care within the year.
	2.All Diagnoses count of episodes—these figures represent a count of all FCE's where the diagnosis was mentioned in any of the 14 (seven prior to 2002–03) diagnosis fields in a hospital episode statistics (HES) record.
	3.The primary diagnosis is the first of up to 14 (seven prior to 2002–03) diagnosis fields in the HES data set and provides the main reason why the patient was in hospital.
	4.Secondary diagnoses—as well as the primary diagnosis, there are up to 13 (six prior to 2002–03) secondary diagnosis fields in HES that show other diagnoses relevant to the episode of care.
	5.ICD-10 diagnosis codes for arrhythmia are:
	147.0 Re-entry ventricular arrhythmia
	149.0 Ventricular fibrillation and flutter
	149.1 Atrial premature depolarization
	149.2 Junctional premature depolarization
	149.3 Ventricular premature depolarization
	149.4 Other and unspecified premature depolarization
	149.5 Sick sinus syndrome
	149.8 Other specified cardiac arrhythmias
	149.9 Cardiac arrhythmia, unspecified
	P29.1 Neonatal cardiac dysrhythmia
	6.Figures have not been adjusted for shortfalls in data (i.e. the data are ungrossed). HES, Health and Social Care Information Centre

Autism

Edward Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what training is provided to (a) doctors, (b) nurses and (c) other healthcare professionals in treating and caring for those with autism; and what funding has been allocated for the treatment of autism in the 2005–06 financial year.

Liam Byrne: The training of doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals in treating and caring for those with autism is a matter for the relevant professional bodies. Overall, in 2004–05, the national health service spent £3.6 billion on training. Information about funding allocations is not held centrally. It is for local NHS organisations to decide how resources should be allocated between services, taking account of local circumstances and priorities.

Barnet Chase Farm Hospital

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will make a statement on activity levels at Barnet Chase Farm hospital in (a) the last month and (b) each of the last three years.

Jane Kennedy: The reported activity levels over the last few years for Barnet and Chase Farm hospital are shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Elective admissions Non-elective admissions 
		
		
			 2001–02 32,537 25,873 
			 2002–03 32,720 28,054 
			 2003–04 34,890 29,567 
			 2004–05 34,386 34,192 
			 April 2005 2,861 2,924 
		
	
	These figures are for all general and acute specialties and are sourced from the Department's monthly monitoring returns.

Barnet Chase Farm Hospital

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what she expects the capacity of the new surgery unit at Chase Farm hospital to be; when she expects it to be operating at, or near to, that capacity; when she expects it to open; and if she will make a statement.

Jane Kennedy: North Central London Strategic Health Authority have advised that the surgicentre will have a capacity of 3000 cases a year and anticipates it to be operational later this month.
	The surgicentre will include orthopaedic in-patient services, general day cases, and endoscopies. It will provide an elective service, which will not be affected by emergency activity.

Barnet Chase Farm Hospital

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will make a statement on the financial position of Barnet Chase Farm Hospital Trust.

Jane Kennedy: Subject to the process of audit and final accounts, the trust broke even in 2004–05. It has yet to agree a financial plan for 2005–06, which would enable it to achieve a balanced position. North London Strategic Health Authority is working closely with Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals National Health Service Trust and its primary care trusts to achieve that end.

Barnet Chase Farm Hospital

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will make a statement on standards of cleaning at Barnet hospital.

Jane Kennedy: As part of the patient environment action team's inspection programme Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals National Health Service Trust was assessed in 2005 as acceptable—from a five-point scale which runs through excellent, good, acceptable, poor or unacceptable.

British Nutrition Foundation

David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Healthwhat role the British Nutrition Foundation has in advising her Department on food and nutrition policy.

Caroline Flint: The British Nutrition Foundation (BNF) are members of the nutrition forum which was set up in 2002 to bring key stakeholders in nutrition together. The forum aimed to allow ah exchange of views, build stakeholder relationships and assist the Food Standards Agency and United Kingdom health Departments in the development and implementation of nutrition policies.
	The Government obtains its scientific advice on nutrition and health from an independent expert advisory committee, the scientific advisory committee on nutrition.

Cardiac Care

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many specialist nurses there are in Gloucestershire who deal with (a) coronary heart disease and (b) arrhythmia in young people.

Liam Byrne: Information on numbers of specialist nurses dealing with coronary heart disease and arrhythmia for young people is not collected.

Childhood Obesity

Hugh Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children in England were obese (a) in 1997 and (b) in the latest period for which figures are available.

Caroline Flint: holding answer 6 June 2005
	The available information is shown in the following table. Although figures are requested for the United Kingdom, the Department only holds figures for England. These are taken from the results of the Health Survey for England for 1997 and 2003, the latest year for which figures are available.
	
		Obesity prevalence and population estimates in English children aged two to 15 in 1997 and 2003 -- Aged two to 15 with a valid body mass index (BMI) measurement
		
			  Year 
			 BMI status 1997 2003 
		
		
			 Percentage obese 12.6 16.6 
			
			 Number of children surveyed 2,854 2,833 
			
			 Surveys estimates represented as a number of the total population   
			 Number obese (million) 1.1 1.4 
		
	
	Note:
	UK national BMI percentile classification used to classify obesity in children. Population figures used are 2001 census based resident population estimates. As figures are derived from a random sample of less than 3,000 children in each of 1997 and 2003, they may be subject to some sampling error and should therefore be treated with caution.
	Source:
	Health Survey for England 2003.

Chronic Liver Disease

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment her Department has made of the success rate in recent trials of using patients' own stem cells to treat chronic liver disease.

Jane Kennedy: The Department awaits the results of these research trials using patients' own stem cells to treat chronic liver disease with interest. As with all research, until the experimental analysis is completed, subjected to peer review and replicated by other researchers, it would be wrong to speculate on the potential clinical implications for patients.

Civil Servants

Paul Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many civil servants in the Department received faith awareness training in 2004.

Jane Kennedy: The Department has produced guidance notes for managers and staff on religious add cultural awareness and a brief guide to world religions following the introduction of the Employment Equality (Religion and Belief) Regulations. These notes will be supplemented by further training later this year, when the Department's new diversity package is launched. This package will include a specific module on faith and belief.

Community Hospitals

Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what facilities are planned to be provided by (a) new and (b) existing community hospitals;
	(2)  whether newly-built community hospitals will provide inpatient facilities;
	(3)  whether she plans that existing community hospitals should continue to provide inpatient beds.

Liam Byrne: We are currently considering the range of services that could be offered by the new generation of community hospitals promised in the Labour manifesto. Decisions on exactly which services will be provided by each new community hospital will be made, in full consultation with the public and health professionals locally.

Community Hospitals

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what her Department's plans are for the expansion of community hospitals over the next five years;
	(2)  what funding has been allocated centrally for the expansion of community hospitals over the next five years.

Liam Byrne: The Department is in the early stages of planning for the expansion of community hospitals and the exact amount of central funding to be made available will be determined at a later stage.

Continuing Care (Coventry)

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people in Coventry South are receiving NHS fully-funded continuing care.

Rosie Winterton: This information is not held centrally.

Correspondence

Hugo Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the requirements are for NHS health trusts and hospitals to include both a telephone number and an email address on all communications.

Jane Kennedy: holding answer 14 June 2005
	The NHS identity guidance, is available on the nhs.uk website at www.nhsidentity.nhs.uk, published in 2000, gives examples of stationery layouts which explicitly include telephone numbers and email addresses. Reinforcing this, the toolkit for producing patient information (2003), also to be found on the identity website, includes in its checklists a reminder that contact information should be considered.
	It is for national health service organisations to decide how contact information should be presented, within the bounds of the identity guidance, depending on the needs of their patients or service users and the circumstances of the particular communication.

Direct Payments (Disabled People)

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people with disabilities use direct payments.

Liam Byrne: The information requested is shown in the table.
	
		England—1 April 2003 to 31 March 2004
		
			  Direct payments 
			  All ages 18 to 64 65 and over 
		
		
			 Physical disability, frailty  and sensory impairment 14,000 8,900 5,400 
			 Learning disability 1,900 1,800 — 
		
	
	Note:
	These figures are estimates based on the figures from 144 of the 150 councils. Figures do not sum due to rounding.

Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what funding has been made available for research into Duchenne muscular dystrophy in each year since 1997 from (a) the Medical Research Council, (b) the Department of Health's research and development budget and (c) other sources; what research funding she plans to provide for research into Duchenne muscular dystrophy in the coming years; and if she will make a statement.

Liam Byrne: Medical Research Council (MRC) spend on research relevant to Duchenne muscular dystrophy since 1997 is shown in the following table.
	
		£ million
		
			  Spend 
		
		
			 1997–98 0.5 
			 1998–99 0.53 
			 1999–2000 0.59 
			 2000–01 1.13 
			 2001–02 2 
			 2002–03 1.8 
			 2003–04 2.4 
		
	
	Much of the muscular dystrophy research supported by the MRC is on-going.
	The main part of the Department's expenditure on health research is allocated to and managed by national health service organisations. Details of individual projects supported in the NHS, including a number concerned with Duchenne muscular dystrophy, can be found on the national research register at www.dh.gov.uk/research.
	In 2004, the Department announced £1.6 million funding, from the Genetics White Paper, for a four year project which aims to address the cause of muscular dystrophy.

Fraud

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment she has made of whether the creation of the Legal Protection Unit of the Counter Fraud and Security Management Services has increased the rate of detection and prosecution of offences of assault against healthcare workers during their hours of work.

Jane Kennedy: holding answer 14 June 2005
	Work is currently being undertaken on the collation and validation of the number of successful prosecutions obtained in 2004–05 against those who have physically assaulted NHS staff. Once the figures have been fully checked it is planned to release these shortly.

General Practitioners (Hornsey and Wood Green)

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many full-time equivalent NHS general practitioners have been employed in each of the last five years in Hornsey and Wood Green constituency; and if she will make a statement.

Jane Kennedy: Figures for all general practitioners, excluding retainers and registrars, for Haringey Teaching Primary Care Trust for 2001 to December 2004 are shown in the table.
	
		All practitioners (excluding retainers and registrars)(23), for Haringey Teaching Primary Care Trust, 2001 to December 2004 -- Estimated full-time equivalents
		
			  Q05 North Central London 5C9 Haringey Teaching PCT 
		
		
			 2000 757 (24)— 
			 2001 752 142 
			 2002 768 141 
			 2003 803 138 
			 2004 800 140 
			 December 2004 745 134 
		
	
	(23)General medical practitioners (excluding retainers and registrars) includes contracted GPs, general medical service (GMS) others and personal medical service (PMS) others. Prior to September 2004, this group included GMS unrestricted principals, PMS contracted GPs, PMS salaried GPs, restricted principals, assistants, salaried doctors (Para 52 SFA), PMS other, flexible career scheme GPs and GP returners.
	(24)Data not applicable.
	Notes:
	1.Data as at 30 September 2000–2004 and 31 December 2004.
	2.Full time equivalent (FTE) data has been estimated using the results from the 1992–93 GMP Workload Survey For 1994 to 2003: contracted GPs—Full time = 1.00 fte; three quarter time = 0.69 fte; job share = 0.65 fte; and half time = 0.60 fte; other GP types Full time = 1.0 fte.
	For 2004: All GPs—Full time 1.0 fte; part time= 0.6 fte, and therefore may not be fully comparable with previous years.
	FTE GP Retainers have been estimated using a factor of 0.12 per session for 1994–2004.
	Source:
	National Health Service Health and Social Care Information Centre GMS and PMS statistics.

GPs (Out of Hours)

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many out-of-hours general practitioners there are per thousand of the population in (a) the area covered by Burntwood, Lichfield and Tamworth Primary Care Trust, (b) the Shropshire and Staffordshire Strategic Health Authority and (c) England.

Liam Byrne: The information is not collected by the Department. However, information may be available from the primary care trust (PCT) and strategic health authority.
	The Department is supporting out-of-hours services through greatly increased funding which have been allocated directly to PCTs which commission out-of-hours services. Some £316 million was allocated in 2004–05 to help fund PCT provision of out-of-hours services. In addition, PCTs also using their unified budgets—increased by £12.7 from £45 billion in 2003–04 to £53.9 billion in 2005–06—to establish integrated networks of urgent care provision.

Health Bodies

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many members of staff of the Healthcare Commission are on zero-hour contracts.

Jane Kennedy: holding answer 14 June 2005
	Iunderstand from the Chairman of the Healthcare Commission that it employs 34 locum inspectors on zero-hour contracts.

Health Bodies

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people are employed by the (a) Healthcare Commission and (b) Mental Health Act Commission expressed as (i) headcount and (ii) full-time equivalent.

Jane Kennedy: holding answer 14 June 2005
	Iunderstand from the Chairman of the Healthcare Commission that as at 31 May the Commission had a staff of 744 (708 whole time equivalents).
	I also understand from the Chairman of the Mental Health Act Commission that as at 31 May the Commission employed 42 staff (42 whole time equivalents) at its headquarters in Nottingham. This includes two executive board appointments, the Chief Executive and the Director of Finance. The Mental Health Act Commission is also responsible for the appointment of Second Opinion Appointed Doctors to carry out functions under Section 58 of the Mental Health Act 1983: currently there are 150 such appointees. Additionally, there are 102 Commissioners who are public appointees appointed under Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments rules by the NHS Appointments Commission to carry out the Commission's visiting function on behalf of the Secretary of State.

Healthcare Commission/ Commission for Social Care Inspection

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress has been made on merging the Healthcare Commission with the Commission for Social Care Inspection; whether this merger will require primary legislation; when she expects this merger to be completed; and if she will make a statement.

Jane Kennedy: The approach to and time scale for the merger is being determined, in the context of the wider review of regulation in social care and health, as announced in the Chancellor's Budget statement on 16 March.
	Merging the two Commissions will require primary legislation.
	The Chancellor announced on 16 March that plans would be developed to achieve a merger by 2008.

Hepatitis C

Janet Dean: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what advice her Department has given to local authorities to assist them in monitoring tattoo and piercing parlours to prevent infections, with particular reference to hepatitis C.

Caroline Flint: In February 2004 the Department published Regulation of Cosmetic Piercing and Skin-Colouring Businesses", guidance for local authorities on section 120 of the Local Government Act 2003. The guidance explains the provisions in section 120 and Schedule 6 of the Local Government Act 2003, which amend section 15 of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions Act) 1982, and came into force on 1 April 2004.
	The new provisions give local authorities in England (outside London) and in Wales, specific powers relating to persons carrying on businesses of cosmetic piercing, that is, piercing of the body including the ear, and semi-permanent skin-colouring, including micropigmentation, semi-permanent make-up and temporary tattooing. Local authorities will be able to require such businesses: to register themselves and their premises; and to observe byelaws relating to the cleanliness and hygiene of premises, practitioners and equipment.
	London local authorities already have such powers under private legislation (London Local Authorities Act 1991 and the Greater London Council (General Powers) Act 1981).
	These measures are intended to increase health protection and reduce the risk of transmission of blood-borne virus infections such as HIV and hepatitis B and C and other infections. The publication also contains model byelaws that local authorities may wish to adopt in their area to facilitate consistency of enforcement. It also makes reference to the Health and Safety Executive/Local Authorities Enforcement Liaison Committee, Local Authority Circular 76/2: Enforcement of skin piercing activities (October 2001). This contains comprehensive guidance on issues such as infection control, waste disposal and aftercare advice.
	Before the new provisions were introduced by the Local Government Act 2003, local authorities had powers under the Local Government (Miscellaneous) Provisions Act 1982 to regulate ear piercing, tattooing, acupuncture and electrolysis by requiring registration and observance of byelaws.

Hepatitis C

Edward O'Hara: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the reason was for the decision not to pay the same level of compensation to the widows and dependants of those who have died from hepatitis C contracted from contaminated blood products administered under the NHS the same level of compensation paid to widows and dependants of those who have died from HIV/AIDS contracted similarly.

Caroline Flint: I refer my hon. Friend to the reply my hon. Friend, the then Parliamentary Under Secretary for Health (Melanie Johnson) gave on 22 March 2005, Official Report, column 742W.

Hospital-acquired Infections

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  at what intervals hospital trusts are required to provide her Department with details of cases of clostridium difficile;
	(2)  whether hospital trusts are required to report cases of clostridium difficile to the strategic health authority.

Jane Kennedy: As part of the mandatory surveillance scheme, hospital trusts are required to provide the Health Protection Agency with information on Clostridium difficile" quarterly. They are not required to routinely report cases to the strategic health authority.

Hospital-acquired Infections

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of supermarket kits designed to counter hospital-based infections.

Jane Kennedy: Healthcare workers should be trained in the use of personal protective equipment (PPE) and in the performance of clinical procedures to keep down the risk of infection. Consequently, these kits are unnecessary and patients do not need to take their own PPE into hospital.

Hospital-acquired Infections

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when she will publish the data collected under the mandatory surveillance scheme for (a) clostridium difficile associated diarrhoea, (b) glycopoptide resistant enterocci and (c) orthopaedic surgical site infection; and whether this data will be published for intervals of six months.

Jane Kennedy: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave on 13 June 2005, Official Report, columns 104–05W.

Hospital-acquired Infections

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will make a statement on the incidence of MRSA at Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals.

Jane Kennedy: There were 60 meticillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bacteraemia reports for Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals National Health Service Trust for the period April 2004 to September 2004. The MRSA rate per 1000 bed-days were 0.35.

London Ambulance Service

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the arrangements will be for patient involvement in the London Ambulance Service after the existing patients forum is abolished.

Rosie Winterton: The London Ambulance Service (LAS) national health service trust is fully committed to working with patients and their representatives and will continue to develop an effective relationship with them in order to improve further the quality of patient care delivered throughout London.
	It is the Government's intention to focus patient forum activity at the primary care trust (PCT) level but with arrangements in place to ensure the whole patients' journey" is covered by forum activity. In the context of the London Ambulance Service NHS trust, it is envisaged that all London PCT forums would work together to ensure that ambulance services are monitored and reviewed effectively from the patient perspective. It will be for the forums themselves to decide how best to achieve a comprehensive and robust arrangement, but one approach might be for each PCT forum to nominate one of its number to form a pan-London specialist ambulance review panel. Such an arrangement would mean that there was strong input from across the city with a membership of 29, with each London locality having a real chance to input into the LAS at both strategic and operational levels.

Multiple Sclerosis

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if her Department will commission trials into the use of low-dose naltrexone for the treatment of multiple sclerosis.

Liam Byrne: The main agency through which the Government support medical and clinical research is the Medical Research Council (MRC). The MRC is an independent body funded by the Department of Trade and Industry via the Office of Science and Technology.
	The MRC does not normally allocate funds to particular topics. Research proposals in all areas compete for the funding available. When appropriate, high quality research in particular areas of strategic importance may be given priority in competition for funds, but research excellence and importance to health continues to be the primary considerations in funding decisions. The MRC always welcomes high quality applications for support into any aspect of human health and these are judged in open competition with other demands on funding.

National Service Framework for Older People

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what assessment she has made of the implementation of the National Service Framework for Older People milestone for (a) annual medicine reviews for all peopleover 75 years and (b) six-monthly medicine reviews for people over 75 years taking four or more medicines;
	(2)  what estimate she has made of the proportion of the population aged over 75 years being treated with four or more prescribed medicines at one time in the last period for which figures are available.

Liam Byrne: The Department does not collect centrally the data requested.
	Strategic health authorities, as part of their performance management role, must ensure that primary care trusts within their areas are providing quality services to their patients. This includes delivering the milestones in national service frameworks.
	The national medicines management collaborative use medication reviews as measures for assessing improvements in patient care. They have monitored medication reviews for older people undertaken through general practitioner surgeries and also within care homes. Historic data for both measures, collected from the 146 PCTs taking part in the programme, suggest that there have been significant and sustained improvements in the number and quality of medication reviews.

National Service Standards

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will make a statement on national standards for (a) prosthetic, (b) orthotic and (c) wheelchair services.

Jane Kennedy: These services are provided on a basis of clinical need and managed by the primary care trusts.

NHS Business Services Authority

Paul Beresford: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the (a) overall budget and (b) budget for each constituent body is for the NHS Business Services Authority; whether there will be any reduction in staff numbers from the Dental Practice Board following the merger into the NHS Business Services Authority; and what estimate her Department has made of the transfer costs of the merger.

Jane Kennedy: holding answer 13 June 2005
	The NHS Business Services Authority (BSA) will constitute the Dental Practice Board, the Prescription Pricing Authority and the NHS Pensions Agency. It has yet to be finalised if the Counter Fraud and Security Management Services (CFSMS) will form part of the BSA.
	It is anticipated that the BSA will commence operations on 1 April 2006. The Chairman and Chief Executive have yet to be appointed and until they are in place, detailed business plans cannot be agreed.
	The baseline budget for the BSA in 2006–07 is £120.7 million, which is based on the collective budgets for the BSA old component parts. In accordance with the review of Arm's Length Bodies announced in 2004, the BSA will be expected to make a saving of £25 million on this figure in its second year. Budgets will not be set for the BSA's old constituent parts.
	Over time, the BSA expects to reduce the total number of posts by 25 per cent., compared to today. Where these posts will be reduced has not yet been determined as the business strategies are being formulated.
	The transfer costs of the merger will depend largely on the extent to which the BSA is restructured. Options are still under evaluation and it is therefore not possible to calculate likely transfer costs.

NHS Fraud

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many responses to the Department's consultation on access to relevant documents, records and data to counter NHS fraud raised concerns that the pre-consultation process would impact adversely on patient confidentiality; how many responses there were in total; and if she will make a statement.

Jane Kennedy: Maintaining patient confidentiality is vitally important and the consultation sought views on the proposed safeguards that should be in place to ensure confidentiality is protected. Consequently, a number of responses commented on the importance of the proposed safeguards. These include a new criminal offence in the unlikely event that information obtained through these powers is wrongly disclosed. However, of the 47 responses only 11 responses specifically addressed the issue of patient confidentiality regardless of any proposed safeguards. The 47 responses showed overwhelming support for the proposed measures.

Obesity

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps the Government are taking to encourage people suffering from obesity to lose weight, with particular reference to those in disadvantaged areas.

Caroline Flint: Better services to help people, including those in disadvantaged areas, to lose weight and then maintain a more healthy weight are among the key issues covered in the Government White Paper Choosing Health: Making healthy choices easier". Specific action includes an obesity awareness campaign, the development of a comprehensive care pathway and a weight loss guide.

Panton-Valentine Leukocidin

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research her Department commissioned into the presence and spread of the strains of staphylococcus aureus with Panton-Valentine Leukocidin.

Jane Kennedy: No research has been commissioned into the prevalence of Panton-Valentine Leukocidin producing Staphylococcus aureus". However, the Department is investigating the feasibility of a survey to establish the prevalence of community acquired staphylococcal infections, expected to provide evidence on the prevalence of Staphylococcus aureus" with Panton-Valentine Leukocidin.

Panton-Valentine Leukocidin

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps her Department is taking to make medical practitioners aware of the symptoms of infections with staphylococcus aureus with Panton-Valentine Leukocidin.

Jane Kennedy: The Health Protection Agency has already published a number of articles alerting healthcare professionals to these infections and the Chief Medical Officer will be issuing guidance to raise awareness and promote good practice.

Pedicabs/Rickshaws

Gwyneth Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people were treated in hospital for injuries resulting from accidents which occurred while they were passengers in pedicabs and rickshaws in the last period for which figures are available.

Caroline Flint: The specific information requested is not collected centrally. There is data on people admitted as hospital in-patients but we are not able to identify accidents to passengers of pedicabs and rickshaws as a separate group.

Race Relations

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many and what percentage of staff in her Department have received training on the general and specific duties of the Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000, broken down by (a) ethnicity and (b) grade.

Jane Kennedy: The Department ran mandatory valuing diversity training sessions for all staff in 2002 and 2003. This training included information about the Race Relations (Amendment) Act. The Department is currently developing further training on diversity that will be launched later this year, and which all staff will be expected to complete. This training will include a specific module on race relations.

Race Relations

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what arrangements are in place to ensure that bodies within the responsibility of her Department comply with the requirements of the Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000.

Jane Kennedy: The Department published its new three-year race equality scheme on 27 May 2005, which is available on the Department's website 1 . This sets out how the Department and its Executive Agencies, NHS Connecting for Health, NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency and Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency, intend to meet their obligations under the Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000. Monitoring reports on the implementation of this Scheme will be made to the Departmental Management Board and Corporate Management Committee on at least a six monthly basis.
	1 www.dh.gov.uk/PolicyAndGuidance/EqualityAndHuman Rights/EqualityAndHumanRightsArticle/fs/en?CONTENT_ID =4106482&chk+6BMT/s.

Repeat Prescriptions

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what plans she has to make the Quality and Outcomes Framework indicator for medication reviews for repeat prescriptions available to (a) hon. Members and (b) the public;
	(2)  whether the Healthcare Commission has responsibility for measuring compliance with the quality and outcomes framework indicator for medication reviews for repeat prescriptions; and if she will make a statement.

Jane Kennedy: All of the quality and outcomes framework (QOF) indicators are publicly available in the general medical service statement of financial entitlement 2004–05; a copy of which is available in the Library. The data on achievement against the QOF indicator set for 2004–05 will be published in August 2005 by the health and social care information centre (HSCIC).
	The Healthcare Commission has responsibility for the performance of primary care trusts (PCTs). The Healthcare Commission does not have responsibility for measuring the compliance with the QOF indicators. PCTs assess compliance by participating practices with the QOF indicators.

Repeat Prescriptions

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance she has issued to NHS organisations on the length of cycles for which repeat prescriptions should operate.

Jane Kennedy: Guidance on the length of national health service prescriptions was issued by the National Prescribing Centre in issue 20 of its quarterly newsletter, Connect, in March 2000. Copies have been placed in the Library.

Rheumatology

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of rheumatologists are unable to prescribe anti-TNFa therapy to rheumatoid patients they identify as being suitable for such treatment in accordance with National Institute for Clinical Excellence guidelines.

Liam Byrne: This information is not collected centrally.

Rheumatology

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of rheumatologists are unable to prescribe anti-TNFa treatments for (a) psoriatic arthritis and (b) ankylosing spondylitis in accordance with guidelines set by the British Society for Rheumatology.

Liam Byrne: This information is not collected centrally.

South Birmingham Hospital

John Hemming: To ask the Secretary of State for Health by how much the contract price for the new South Birmingham Hospital has changed since the initial budgets.

Liam Byrne: This is a matter for the Chair of the University Hospital Birmingham National Health Service Foundation Trust. I have written to Mr. John Charlton informing him of your enquiry.

UK Doctors (Developing Countries)

John Battle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many doctors who trained in the UK are working in developing countries.

Liam Byrne: The requested information is not collected centrally.

Water (Bacterial Contamination)

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will make a statement on the frequency and level of bacterial contamination found in (a) bottled and (b) tap water; and what assessment she has made of the health implications therefrom.

Elliot Morley: I have been asked to reply.
	Spring and bottled drinking water must comply with similar microbiological safety standards to those for the public water supply in the Water Supply (Water Quality) Regulations (England) 2000. These parameters are specified in the Natural Mineral Water, Spring Water and Bottled Drinking Water Regulations 1999 (as amended). The Food Standards Agency is aware of two withdrawals of bottled water on the grounds of bacterial contamination since 2000.
	Water companies in England and Wales have to monitor for specific microbiological parameters at the frequencies and points set out in the Water Supply (Water Quality) Regulations 2000 in England and 2001 in Wales. These parameters are total coliform bacteria, E.coli. Enterococci and Clostridium perfringens. The presence of these organisms indicates potential bacterial contamination of the water supply and the possible presence of other pathogens. If any of these organisms is detected, water companies are required to investigate the source of the potential contamination and take appropriate action to protect public health. Monitoring results are included in the annual reports to the Secretary of State by the Chief Inspector of Drinking Water, available in the House of Commons Library. Recent reports for the years 1999–2003 are also available on the Drinking Water Inspectorate website (www.dwi.gov.uk).

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Airline Failure (Repatriation Arrangements)

David Marshall: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what plans his Department have in place for repatriating UK citizens stranded abroad in the event of a major scheduled airline failure.

Kim Howells: British embassies, consulates and high commissions overseas have up-to-date plans for helping British citizens affected by all types of consular emergency. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office strongly recommend that UK citizens travelling abroad take out comprehensive travel insurance.
	My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Transport (Mr. Darling) is currently considering the issue of financial protection for air travellers, including the possibility of extending statutory protection to all UK-originating flights.

Azerbaijan

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations his Department has made to the Government of Azerbaijan regarding the arrest and detention of Mrs.Almas Guliyeva.

Douglas Alexander: We have been closely involved in the case of Mrs. Guliyeva since her arrest and detention earlier this month. Staff from our embassy in Baku have been in contact with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Customs Committee, the police and Mrs. Guliyeva's lawyer. In addition, on 13 June our ambassador sought clarification from the Deputy Foreign Minister on whether the Azeri authorities intend to charge Mrs. Guliyeva. We await the authorities' response.
	Shortly after she was detained, Mrs. Guliyeva fell ill, and has been hospitalised. consular staff from our embassy visited her both immediately after her detention and in hospital.

Diego Garcia (Terrorist Suspects)

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the status of terrorist suspects held on military bases in Diego Garcia.

Douglas Alexander: The US authorities have repeatedly given us assurances that no terrorist suspects are being held on Diego Garcia, or have at any time passed in transit through Diego Garcia or its territorial waters. The British representative on Diego Garcia has confirmed this to be the case.

European Armaments Agency

Ian Davidson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether it is his policy that the creation of a European Armaments Agency, as proposed in the Treaty Establishing a Constitution for Europe, could be agreed without ratification of the Treaty.

Douglas Alexander: The European Defence Agency was established in June 2004, following unanimous agreement by EU Heads of State and Government. The Government agreed with this decision as the European Defence Agency could be established under the current Treaty provisions, and we believed that the Agency would make a real contribution to enhancing the effectiveness of EU member states' military capabilities.

Former Yugoslavia

Martyn Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on progress in the search for Bosnian war-crime suspects, with particular reference to (a) Radovan Karadzic and (b) General Ratko Mladic.

Douglas Alexander: We welcome recent progress in the search for fugitive war crimes suspects. In the last six months, 17 Bosnian Serb or Serbian indictees have been transferred to The Hague by the Governments of Serbia and of the Republika Srpska in Bosnia and Herzegovina—there are now only 10 remaining fugitives. These include Radovan Karadzic and Ratko Mladic, who remain at large 10 years after the Srebrenica massacre, for which they are held most responsible.
	The Chief Prosecutor, Carla del Ponte, in her most recent report to the United Nations Security Council, has commended the improvement in co-operation from the authorities in Belgrade and Banja Luka, who have re-iterated their commitment to full co-operation with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. But the policy of encouraging voluntary surrenders, which they have pursued to date, appears to have reached it limits.
	The UK, together with the international community, therefore continues to press for the transfer of all outstanding fugitive indictees, notably Karadzic and Mladic, as well as Gotovina, to The Hague. If they are unwilling to surrender voluntarily, the countries of the region should locate and arrest them.

Former Yugoslavia

Martyn Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on progress in the search for the Croation war-crimes suspect General Ante Gotovina.

Douglas Alexander: The latest report of the Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY)—Carla del Ponte—the United Nations Security Council makes clear there are still serious deficiencies in Croatian efforts to locate and detain fugitive indictee Ante Gotovina. The report notes some positive developments, such as the adoption by the Croatian authorities of an Action Plan to improve co-operation, but reaffirms that Croatia cannot be said to be co-operating fully until Gotovina is in The Hague, or until the provision of information leading to his location and arrest.
	The UK fully supports the Chief Prosecutor's assessment and continues to press for the transfer of all remaining fugitive indictees, in particular Karadzic, Mladic and Gotovina, to The Hague.

Hamas

Louise Ellman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what instructions he has given his diplomatic representatives in relation to contacts with Hamas in the West Bank and Gaza; and if he will make a statement.

Kim Howells: holding answer 13 June 2005
	In February my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary authorised working-level contacts in the normal course of business with Hamas elected representatives not directly implicated in violence. The Government will not have any contacts with the leadership of Hamas until they have dropped their commitment to the destruction of Israel and given up violence as a legitimate tool.
	There have been two such meetings. One with the Mayor of Deir al-Balah on 7 March and the other with the Mayor of Qalqilya on 2 June. In both meetings British officials made clear HMG's demand that Hamas renounce violence and recognise Israel's right to exist. They also discussed the municipality services and budget and the political, economic and humanitarian situation with both mayors. No decisions were taken at either of these meetings, nor were there specific outcomes". No further such meetings are planned.

Hepatitis C

Janet Dean: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreignand Commonwealth Affairs what advice his Department gives to those travelling overseas about the dangers of contracting (a) hepatitis C and (b) other infections from tattooing.

Kim Howells: We do not provide specialist advice. However, as a part of its Know Before You Go" travel safety campaign and through its Travel Advice service, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) offers general health-related advice and tips to British travellers going overseas. For example, the FCO website (www.fco.gov.uk) carries a reference to the risks associated with tattooing in relation to HIV and AIDS.
	The FCO website carries a link to the Department of Health website for more detailed information on health issues.

India

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreignand Commonwealth Affairs if he will make representations to (a) the Indian Government and (b) the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh concerning the recent murders of Pastor Isaac Raju and Pastor K Daniel.

Kim Howells: We have no plans to raise these, individual cases involving Indian citizens, with the Government of India. However we do engage with India on the wider issues raised by these cases in the course of our bilateral relationship.

India

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreignand Commonwealth Affairs if he will make representations to (a) the Indian Government and (b) the Chief Minister of Gujarat concerning the continuing activities of militant Hindu groups in (i)Andhra Pradesh state and (ii) India.

Kim Howells: We have no current plans to make representations to the Indian Government or the Government of Gujarat about the continuing activities of alleged militant Hindu groups in India. But we do raise regularly, at various levels, the issues of political and religious freedom with the Government of India.
	The Government had a policy of non-engagement with the Government of Gujarat, including Chief Minister Modi, since the atrocities of 2002 because of our strong concerns over what was the worst outbreak of religious related violence in India for over 10 years.

Iraq

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreignand Commonwealth Affairs what plans he has to conduct an inquiry into the Iraqi Oil for Food programme, with specific reference to British involvement.

Kim Howells: I refer my hon. Friend to the reply I gave on 23 May 2005, Official Report, column 29W and to my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary's response to the Foreign Affairs Committee's 6th report on Foreign Policy Aspects of the War against Terrorism, presented to Parliament on 8 June 2005, paragraph 5, page 5. The report is also available on the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's website at http://www.fco.gov.uk/Files/kfile/Cm6590.pdf

Iraq

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Volcker investigations; and if he will make a statement.

Kim Howells: The Government support fully the work of the Independent Inquiry Committee (IIC) investigating the allegations of corruption surrounding the UN's Iraq Oil for Food Programme. There have been no ministerial representations to the Independent Inquiry Committee. However, UK Government officials are in frequent contact with IIC staff regarding their investigations.

Israel

Mark Lazarowicz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with representatives of Israel regarding the future of the Separation Wall.

Kim Howells: Most recently my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary raised his concerns about the route of the barrier with Israeli Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom during his visit to Israel on 7 June 2005. The Foreign Secretary reiterated this Government's position that, while we fully recognise Israel's right to self-defence, we believe that the barrier should be built either on or behind the Green Line.

Israel

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on (a) the Israeli separation wall, (b) Israel's plans to build houses in the E1 corridor and (c) Israeli plans for Al-Bustan in the Silwan Valley.

Kim Howells: The UK fully recognises Israel's right to self-defence, and agrees that a barrier is a reasonable way to achieve this. But the barrier's route should be on or behind the Green Line, and not on occupied territory. My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary reiterated our position on this to Israeli Foreign Minister Shalom during his visit to Israel on 7 June.
	Settlements are illegal under international law and an obstacle to peace. We oppose Israeli Government plans to build 3,500 housing units in El—an area between Jerusalem and the settlement of Ma'aleh Adumim. The Israeli Government says there is no prospect of the plan being implemented soon. But its implementation would effectively split the West Bank in two. The Foreign Secretary also raised this Government's concerns over the impact of continued settlement activity with Israeli Prime Minster Sharon during his recent visit to Israel.
	We were disturbed to hear reports of plans by Israel to demolish 88 homes in Silwan in East Jerusalem and we raised our concerns with the Israeli authorities. We are encouraged to hear that there is now no intention to issue orders to demolish these homes.

Middle East

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with his counterparts from (a) the US, (b) Russia and (c) the EU regarding the Middle East peace process; and if he will make a statement.

Kim Howells: We are in regular contact at all levels with EU partners and members of the Quartet, as well as the parties, to seek to move the Middle East peace process (MEPP) forward.
	Quartet members met at Ministerial level in Moscow on 9 May. We believe it remains crucial that the Quartet plays a central role on the MEPP. As presidency of the EU from July, we shall represent the EU on the Quartet, and shall do whatever we can to use that opportunity to seek progress towards the goal of a negotiated, two-state solution.

Middle East

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the progress of the Middle East peace process.

Kim Howells: There have been positive steps on the Middle East peace process since the beginning of the year. Progress includes renewed high level contact between the parties and a dramatic fall in the level of violence and number of casualties. However, the situation remains fragile.
	The UK remains energetically engaged. It is important that the momentum of progress is maintained. US Security co-ordinator General Ward and the Quartet's disengagement representative Jim Wolfensohn are leading work on security, and economic and governance issues, respectively. My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary visited the region on 7–8 June to offer UK support for both sides and for General Ward and Mr. Wolfensohn, and to encourage the parties to do all they can to take advantage of the opportunities for progress.

Middle East

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent (a) discussions and (b) meetings (i) he and (ii) his staff have had with (A) Israeli and (B) Palestinian representatives.

Kim Howells: We have regular meetings and discussions with both Israeli and Palestinian representatives at all levels. Most recently my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary visited Israel and Palestine on 7–8 June. The Foreign Secretary had a range of meetings, including with Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, Vice Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Foreign Minister Shalom, and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen), Prime Minister Ahmed Qurei (Abu Ala) and Foreign Minister Nasser Al Qidwa, as well as US security co-ordinator General Ward and Quartet co-ordinator for disengagement Jim Wolfensohn.

Middle East

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what plans he has to host another conference in London on the Middle East peace process.

Kim Howells: We have no immediate plans to host another conference in London on the Middle East peace process. We continue to work with partners to ensure that progress on follow-up work to the London Meeting of 1 March is maintained. We also support Israeli disengagement from Gaza and part of the West Bank as an important step towards reviving the momentum of the Middle East peace process.

Palestinian Authority

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Palestinian Authority on its decision to re-introduce the death penalty.

Kim Howells: The continued passing of the death sentence by the Palestinian Authority is a matter of concern. On 13 June 2005, four convicted murderers were executed by the Palestinian Authority in Gaza. The UK has repeatedly raised its concerns with the Palestinian Authority and will raise its concerns about these recent executions. Dutch diplomats (as local EU Presidency) have already made representations to the Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the 13 June 2005 executions. We also plan to raise this bilaterally with the Palestinian Authority at the earliest opportunity.

Honours

Greg Pope: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many officials in his Department received honours in the recent Queen's Birthday Honours List; and at what rank of honour.

Jack Straw: The following numbers of awards were made to officials in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in the Birthday 2005 Honours List.
	
		
			 Award Number 
		
		
			 KCMG 1 
			 CMC 5 
			 QBE 6 
			 MBE 13 (including four locally engaged staff overseas) 
		
	
	In addition, four members of the British Council received honours (two OBEs and two MBEs).

Russia

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations the Government have made to the Russian authorities about the auction of Yuganskneftegaz.

Douglas Alexander: Russia has made important progress along the path of economic and democratic reforms since the break-up of the Soviet Union. But it is clear that its handling of the Yukos affair raises important questions about the rule of law with implications for business and foreign investors alike. We have, through regular Ministerial as well as Embassy contacts with the Russian Government, made clear our concerns in this respect. My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister also discussed the present state of Russia and its future development when he met President Putin in Moscow on 13 June.
	We welcome President Putin's words in his address to the Russian Parliament on 25 April when he said that the tax authorities had no rights to terrorise business. We continue to make clear the importance to investors of an environment in which they can do business and where their legal and property rights are protected.

Ukraine

Tony Lloyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of changes in the (a) economy, (b) constitution and (c) media in Ukraine since Viktor Yushchenko became President.

Douglas Alexander: With only four months elapsed since the new government under President Viktor Yushchenko took office it is early days and much work is still in progress. On the economy, positive steps have been taken to tackle corruption and to simplify the tax system. Progress is also being made to meet the conditions needed to secure Market Economy Status from the EU and to accede to the World Trade Organisation. However, uncertainty remains over the review of past privatisations and there are questions over the longer-term affordability of recent increases in pensions and civil service salaries. The constitutional reforms to increase the powers of the Parliament and Prime Minister in relation to the President are likely to come into force in either September this year or January 2006. The Ukrainian Government is also making progress in entrenching the new freedoms that the media has enjoyed since the Orange Revolution and in investigating the case of the murdered journalist, Hearhiy Gongadze. We look to the Ukrainian Government to maintain the momentum in order both to deliver sustainable growth and prosperity and to take Ukraine closer to the EU.

Visa Cases

Derek Wyatt: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when the visa of Knanittha Srihonthaen will be approved.

Kim Howells: I regret that I cannot provide my hon. Friend with this information as it is not our practice to disclose details of individual entry clearance cases in a public forum. My hon. Friend should write to UKvisas at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office for further information on this application.

NORTHERN IRELAND

Access to Information (Cross-border)

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when a code of practice on access to information held by cross border implementation bodies is expected to be adopted.

Angela Smith: A draft Code of Practice on Freedom of Information for North South Implementation Bodies and Tourism Ireland Ltd. is expected to be available for public consultation before the end of this month. The Code will come into formal operation after the consultation process has been completed and formal approval obtained from the North South Ministerial Council.

Dogs Order

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when the review of the Dogs Order (a) began and (b) ended; how many meetings of the review group were held; and who the members of the review group were.

Angela Smith: The review of the Dogs Order commenced in February 2000 by the issue of a consultation letter to district councils and the USPCA seeking their views on amendments to the Dogs (Northern Ireland) Order 1983. No review group was established.
	Work on reviewing the responses received was suspended in February 2001 following the foot and mouth disease outbreak, and subsequently it has not been possible to take this work forward. The Department of Agriculture and Rural Development does recognise that a review of the Dogs (Northern Ireland) Order 1983 is still required and it is planned to carry out this review as soon as other pressures and commitments allow.

Economic Growth

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what estimate he has made of the growth of the Northern Ireland economy in 2004; and what his estimate is for 2005.

Angela Smith: The latest available figures for Gross Value Added (GVA) relate to 2003 and these show that over the year, the Northern Ireland economy grew by an estimated 6.0 per cent. in nominal terms. This is higher than the UK average of 5 per cent. for the same period, with only the East Midlands showing a higher level of growth.
	Government does not produce forecasts for regional economic growth.

Education and Library Board Services

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what efficiency savings he expects education and library boards in Northern Ireland to make in the 2005–06 financial year.

Angela Smith: In the 2005–06 financial year the NI Education and Library Boards have been asked to realise resource releasing efficiency gains of at least £3.5 million on Centre costs and a further £4.8 million on ear-marked initiative funding for reinvestment in front-line services. The Board Centre gains relate to improved procurement practices, improvements in Home to School Transport arrangements and reductions in teacher absenteeism. The gains on ear-marked initiatives will be made in relation to the School Improvement Programme.
	Boards will also be expected to realise non-resource releasing efficiency gains of £20.1 million principally in relation to teaching, learning and administrative services, following recent investment in information and communications technology through the Classroom 2000 project.

Electricity Prices

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what use has been made of the expenditure allocated in September 2003 to bring about a 10 per cent. reduction in electricity prices to business in Northern Ireland.

Angela Smith: The expenditure allocated in September 2003 was aimed at delivering a Government proposal to reduce electricity prices for business. It has not been possible to implement this because of EU state aid difficulties which the Department is still seeking to resolve.
	As an interim measure, £8.8 million of the available funding has been allocated to assist with energy efficiency measures. This will have the effect of an average 1.5 per cent. reduction in electricity tariffs for all customers in the 2005–06 tariff year. It will also enable Northern Ireland Electricity to constrain tariff increases for 2005–06 to an average of 3.9 per cent. for all customers and to an average of 4.9 per cent. for business customers.

Employment (Public and Private Sectors)

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what estimate he has made of the number of employee jobs in Northern Ireland in (a) the private sector, (b) the public sector and (c) in total at 31 March of each year from 1998.

Angela Smith: Estimates of the number of employee jobs in the private sector, the public sector and in total in Northern Ireland at the first Monday in March in each year 1998 to 2005 are detailed in the following table.
	
		Employee jobs(25) in private sector, public sector and total employee jobs
		
			  (a) Private sector jobs (b) Public sector jobs (c) Total employee jobs 
		
		
			 March 1998 413,430 195,680 609,110 
			 March 1999 424,520 196,350 620,870 
			 March 2000 438,130 199,340 637,470 
			 March 2001 446,720 202,180 648,900 
			 March 2002 455,930 205,110 661,040 
			 March 2003 458,080 210,850 668,930 
			 March 2004 461,880 216,430 678,310 
			 March 2005(26) 470,730 220,430 691,160 
		
	
	(25)Figures are rounded to the nearest 10
	(26)Provisional
	Note:
	Figures are not seasonally adjusted
	Source:
	Quarterly Employment Survey, DETI

Governance Systems (Higher Education)

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland 
	(1)  what plans he has to review the size and composition of boards of governors at further and higher education colleges in Northern Ireland;
	(2)  what plans he has to review systems of governance at further education colleges in Northern Ireland.

Angela Smith: The recent review of the strategy for further education recommended fewer but larger management units in colleges of further and higher education with a resultant reduction in the number of governing bodies to match the number of new colleges. As part of this process the Department will review the size and constitution of governing bodies.

Governance Systems (Higher Education)

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what assessment he has made of the adequacy of systems of university governance within Northern Ireland.

Angela Smith: The Department for Employment and Learning obtains assurance on the adequacy of the university governance within Northern Ireland through the involvement of the Higher Education Funding Council for England's Assurance Service and the adoption of their assurance regime. Assurance arrangements for each institution are agreed through the Financial Memorandum.
	Assurance of the adequacy of governance is obtained through the annual audit of the following documents from each institution: a monitoring statement, corporate planning statement, financial forecasts and the accounts which include a statement of internal control.
	Universities in Northern Ireland adopt the Committee of University Chairmen (CUC) Guide for Members of Higher Education Governing Bodies in the UK—Governance Code of Practice and General Principles; 2004. On the 2 June 2005 the Leadership Foundation for Higher Education provided a one-day seminar on this code. This seminar was attended by representatives from both the executive teams and the governing bodies of both of the Province's universities.

Industrial Growth

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the rate of growth of total industrial production in Northern Ireland was in 2004; and what his estimate is of such growth in 2005.

Angela Smith: Latest figures from the Index of Production show that total industrial production output in Northern Ireland grew by 2.8 per cent. in real terms between 2003 and 2004.
	Government does not produce forecasts for industrial production.

Manufacturing Employment

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many jobs there were in the manufacturing sector in Northern Ireland at 31 March of each year from 1998.

Angela Smith: Estimates of the number of employee jobs in the manufacturing sector in Northern Ireland at the first Monday in March in each year 1998 to 2005 are detailed in the following table.
	
		Table 1—Employee jobs(27) in manufacturing
		
			  Number of jobs 
		
		
			 March 1998 106,580 
			 March 1999 105,310 
			 March 2000 104,550 
			 March 2001 102,790 
			 March 2002 97,740 
			 March 2003 93,520 
			 March 2004 90,040 
			 March 2005(28) 87,650 
		
	
	(27)Figures are rounded to the nearest 10
	(28)Provisional
	Note:
	Figures are not seasonally adjusted
	Source:
	Quarterly Employment Survey, DETI

Money Advice Strategy

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for NorthernIreland what progress has been made on the implementation of the Government's Money Advice strategy for Northern Ireland; how much has been allocated so far; and what criteria were used to determine the recipients.

Angela Smith: Following consultation with key stakeholders, a pilot money advice project is being delivered in 2004–05 and 2005–06 by Advice NI and Citizens Advice. The Department has allocated £550,000 of funding to the pilot project. Over £231,000 of the budget available has been drawn down to date. The locations of the specialist advice posts that are being funded are based on the evidence of unmet need identified by external independent consultants, and advice from Advice NI and Citizens Advice.
	An ongoing evaluation of the pilot project will help provide the basis for developing a longer-term money advice strategy for Northern Ireland.

Planning Applications

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the average length of time taken by the Planning Appeals Commission to process planning appeals in Northern Ireland was in the last five years for which figures are available.

Angela Smith: The Planning Appeals Commission is a tribunal non-departmental public body, and the Chief Commissioner (John Warke) has written to the hon. Lady in the following terms. A copy of the annual report mentioned in the letter is available in the Library.
	Letter from John Warke to Lady Hermon
	I have been asked to provide you with information requested in the above Parliamentary Question.
	The Commission does not maintain details of the average time taken to process planning appeals and it would not be possible to obtain this information for the periods requested without disproportionate cost. The Commission does record details of the median times taken and the percentage of appeals decided within published target times.
	The following table sets out the median times taken for the Commission to decide planning appeals cases (excluding enforcement).
	
		
			  2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 
		
		
			 Formal hearings percentage within 30 weeks — 63.6 26.3 53.3 42.1 
			 Informal hearings percentage within 27 weeks — 89.4 87.3 74.9 80.1 
			 Written representation percentage within 24 weeks 94.4 96.1 86.4 94.2 86.3 
			 All appeals median time (weeks) 21 21 23 21 23 
			 Formal hearing median time (weeks) 22 28 38 30 34 
			 Informal hearing median time (weeks) — 22 25 24 24 
			 Written representations with accompanied site visit median time (weeks) 18 20 22 20 22 
			 Written representations with no accompanied site visit median time (weeks) 16 19 20 17 19 
		
	
	I have also set out the figures relating to the intake of planning appeals (excluding enforcement) over the same period.
	
		
			  2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 
		
		
			 Appeals received 267 359 314 472 711 
			 Percentage change in yearly intake +6.8 +34.8 -12.5 +50.3 +50.6 
			 Appeals withdrawn or not accepted 38 43 46 37 50 
			 Appeals decided 215 265 264 385 493 
			 Appeals in hand at year's end 103 154 158 208 376 
		
	
	I would be happy to provide any further information you require arising out of this response or to meet with you to discuss the matter if that would be more suitable. I have enclosed a copy of the Commissions' Annual Report for the year ending March 2004 which I hope you will find of interest.

Rates Reform

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the conclusions of the Equality Impact Assessment are on the impact of reforming domestic rates into a capital value system on (a) Protestant and (b) middle class areas.

Angela Smith: The Equality Impact Assessment concluded, on the basis of the evidence available, that Protestants are likely to face a higher property tax liability than average under a discrete capital value system. However, taking into account all relevant factors, including ability to pay, such an impact is not considered to be an inappropriate one.
	The Equality Impact Assessment did not address the impact on middle class areas as socio-economic status is not a section 75 category.

TK-ECC

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what steps Invest Northern Ireland is taking to attract inward investment for the former TK-ECC factory site; and if he will make a statement.

Angela Smith: The former TK-ECC factory site is privately owned and Invest NI continues to work with the owners and their agents to market the property in line with the existing employment/industrial use for which it is currently zoned.
	Despite a very competitive global marketplace, Invest NI's international sales and marketing strategy continues to aggressively promote all areas of Northern Ireland as attractive and viable locations for new inward investment opportunities. Invest NI encourages potential investors to consider areas throughout Northern Ireland, including Dundonald, capable of sustaining the project in question. Ultimately it is the promoter of the project, and not Invest NI, that makes the final decision as to where the project will be established, although Invest NI's Local Offices Network works closely with key stakeholders to ensure that detailed information on sub-regional sales propositions is available to all potential investors.